Residents recount chaotic moments as investigators probe an apparently accidental blaze.
SMYRNA, Ga. — People climbed onto balconies and shouted for help as a fast-moving fire tore through a Cobb County apartment building late Sunday, killing two children and an adult and sending several others to hospitals, officials said. About 30 residents were displaced at the Concord Crossing Apartments near Smyrna.
The fire unfolded in minutes, with firefighters working multiple emergencies at once: heavy flames venting from a second-floor unit, victims trapped inside, and residents stranded above the smoke line. Officials said the blaze appears accidental, but investigators have not announced a cause. The deaths and injuries have left families grieving, neighbors shaken and dozens searching for temporary places to sleep as crews assess damage that made two dozen apartments unlivable.
Firefighters were called shortly after 10 p.m. to the 500 block of Woodsong Way, off Old Concord Road, officials said. When crews arrived, flames were blowing out of a front window of a second-floor apartment and threatening the third-floor unit above. Lt. Steve Bennett, a spokesman for Cobb County Fire and Emergency Services, said neighbors and bystanders immediately yelled that people were inside. “We had people tied up doing CPR while people are fighting fire, and while people are searching for victims,” Bennett said in comments carried by local outlets.
Crews pulled six victims from the second-floor unit and rushed them to a hospital while performing lifesaving efforts, officials said. Three people — two children and one adult — died. Officials said an adult and a child remained in critical condition as of Monday, while another person had smoke-related injuries. In one account provided by investigators, a sixth survivor escaped serious harm by jumping from a balcony. Officials have not released the names or ages of the dead, and authorities said they were still notifying relatives.
Outside the apartment where the fire began, the rescue widened. Firefighters carried ground ladders to porches and balconies and brought down residents who could not use stairwells because of smoke and heat. Reports from the scene described more than a dozen people being rescued from upper floors, including residents on the second and third levels. District Chief Justin Green said multiple people were stranded on balconies and needed help. Some residents were treated for minor injuries as they came down ladders into the cold night air.
Residents said the warning signs were small at first, then sudden. Third-floor resident Arianna Hazel Applegate said she smelled smoke and then realized the building was in danger. “First thing I did was scream… fire, fire,” she said in an interview carried by local outlets, describing how she grabbed her dog and ran without shoes, socks or a jacket. Applegate said she could not find two cats after she got outside. Another resident, Sabrina Santiago, said people were running and screaming as the upper floors lit up. “The second story and the third were completely engulfed,” she said.
Other families described desperate, physical escapes. Shayla Duran-Diaz said her father dragged a paralyzed relative from the apartment because he could not move on his own. Duran-Diaz said she grabbed her younger brothers while the flames spread. She later tried to use a fire extinguisher on the burning unit but said it did not make a difference as the fire intensified. The accounts matched what officials described as a rapidly changing scene where crews had to split attention between rescue, suppression and emergency medical care.
The damage left a wide footprint in the building. Officials said eight apartments were heavily damaged and 24 units were uninhabitable, forcing residents out with little time to gather coats, phones, medicines or important papers. Fire officials estimated about 30 people were displaced. Investigators said the fire is believed to have started in a second-floor corner unit and spread to the third floor, though they emphasized the early determination could change after more testing and interviews.
Authorities said the preliminary investigation indicates the fire appears accidental. Officials said they were looking into whether smoke detectors were functioning in the building. They have not said what ignited the fire, whether it began with a cooking accident, an electrical issue or something else, or whether any equipment in the unit failed. They also have not announced whether the building had sprinklers or if residents heard alarms before smoke filled corridors.
As the fire came under control, help arrived for families shivering outside. The American Red Cross and a local church provided warming space and emergency assistance, officials said. The Red Cross said it assisted five families totaling 20 people. Another nearby church, described by fire officials as a Church of the Nazarene, opened its doors during the cold night. By daylight, residents moved through a line of vehicles carrying bags and bins while crews secured the scene and investigators photographed charred rooms and broken windows.
Officials have not announced a date for a final investigative report or when residents might regain access to unaffected units, but they said updates are expected as the cause investigation advances and as the condition of hospitalized victims changes. For now, the building remains a restricted scene while investigators document the origin area and track the fire’s path through the structure.
By Tuesday, displaced residents were still arranging temporary housing and replacing basic items, while fire officials said the next milestone would be a formal update on the fire’s cause and any findings about alarms and building conditions once those checks are completed.
Author note: Last updated February 24, 2026.