VIDEO: Flames and thick black smoke poured from an abandoned apartment complex in Spring Branch on Tuesday evening, marking yet another fire at a property neighbors and city leaders say has been a safety hazard for years.
Firefighters responded to the vacant Park on Westview Apartments near Gessner around 5:20 p.m. The sprawling, fenced-off complex has sat empty for years, becoming a magnet for trespassers, squatters, and frequent fires.
“It hasn’t been taken care of, and they let people squat in there,” neighbor Pat Sims said. “It is what it is.” HFD crews attacked the blaze from above, relying on nearby hydrants since the property no longer has water service.
District Chief Robert Branch said firefighters have grown used to responding there. “This is probably the fifth working fire I’ve made,” Branch told ABC13. “We’ve gotten so good at making a fire here that we know what hydrants we can utilize. It’s almost to the point the guys do it without being told.”
