BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Crews rushed to the scene of a fire at a South Bethlehem apartment building this afternoon.
Firefighters were dispatched to the Five 10 Flats in the 500 block of E. Third Street around 1:30 p.m. Friday.
Initial emergency dispatches called for heavy fire coming from the roof.
Thick, billowing black smoke and ferocious flames greeted firefighters when they pulled up on the scene.
"We had a fire on the roof when we arrived. Because of the wind, it spread quickly across the entire roof. Went up to a fourth alarm fire. We had to call in multiple resources to help us," said Assistant Chief Anthony Prelitz.
The plume of smoke could be seen miles away as fire crews worked to battle the flames. Residents of the 95-unit building stood on the sidewalk watching in disbelief.
Megan Purington lives on the third floor. She says when the fire alarms went off, residents used the stairs to evacuate.
"Like cops saying, 'get out, get out' and I look and there is flames on top of the building and it just spread," she recalled.
Peyton Richter is Purrington's neighbor.
"So, they immediately shuttled us over across the street, away from the danger, and we've kind of been here ever since," Peyton said.
In total, 135 people were displaced, with many watching as firefighters worked to contain the fire, hoping their pets left inside the building were ok.
The fire also impacted all of the shops on the ground floor. Nearby businesses turned out to check on their neighbors and give firefighters water.
"Our intention was to make sure that everyone was good, which is another reason why we came down to serve these men and women who are just putting their lives on the line for us," said Michael Williams.
Former Bethlehem Mayor John Callahan, who now works with the development company that constructed the Five 10 Flats apartment complex, told 69 News they have a video of a man extinguishing a cigarette into a planter on the rooftop deck.
He says they sent the video to the Bethlehem Fire Department and they will use it as they conduct their investigation.
Callahan says they plan to make repairs and get the apartment building back to its original state as soon as possible.
The Red Cross confirmed they are assisting displaced residents.