A fire Tuesday afternoon in Ebensburg forced the evacuation of 63 residents of an apartment building. Firefighters say it began in a clothes dryer and then spread to the building’s ventilation system. Emergency responders were called out around 2 yesterday afternoon, and initially there were reports of entrapment involving elderly residents. Crews were able to get everyone out safely, nobody was hurt, and as it turns out, nobody was ever entrapped. The apartments are operated by the Altoona Housing Authority, which reports that while the fire was contained mostly to the ventilation system, the building itself did experience some minor damage, mainly on the first floor in the maintenance area. So far, no damage estimate has been given. No residents were displaced, and everyone was later assisted with re-entering.
