An early morning apartment fire has left 41 people without a home and a building demolished.
Officials say the fire at the 700 building of the Viking Apartments began just before 6 a.m. Wednesday. It began on the third floor and quickly spread, ultimately damaging 12 units. It took about two hours to extinguish the fire, but once it was out the building was so badly damaged that it had to be demolished.
Firefighters were able to rescue tenants’ pets and some personal belongings.
Others lost everything. Liz Aquilina and her husband Dave Guentner, both victims of the fire, lost their belongings and some of their most prized possessions. They say no fire alarms went off in the apartment building.
Photo Courtesy: Tom Aquilina
Liz’s son, Tom Aquilina, said Liz lost two collections that meant so much to her. She lost over 300 snow globes and 800 horror movies. Dave, Tom’s stepfather, lost his beloved collection of Miami Dolphins memorabilia.
Tom is asking for anyone who has some spare horror movies, snow globes, or Dolphins gear to consider donating to his family who lost everything. You can find their GoFundMe page here. If you are interested in dropping off these donations, you can email Tom at [email protected].
The Brockport community is coming together in support of those impacted by the fire. Many local businesses are serving as donation drop-offs and distribution centers.
Grinds 122 Cafe offered a free meal and drinks to anyone displaced by the fire and is currently accepting donations. You can drop off any donations at the cafe during their normal business hours, Monday through Thursday 6 a.m. until 5 p.m., Friday 6 a.m.-7 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 7 a.m.-2 p.m.
Walmart, Brockport Baptist Church, the Tanning Oasis and Howard Hanna are all accepting donations for those impacted. The Hamlin Dog Shelter is offering temporary housing for any dogs who were misplaced by the fire. They’re also offering free dog food, cat food and litter.
Any students who were displaced by the fire can contact the Office of Residential Life/Learning Communities at [email protected] for support. Any employees who were impacted can contact the Office of Human Resources at (585) 395-2126.
