4 apartments go up in flames in Newton Falls - WFMJ.com News weather sports for Youngstown-Warren Ohio

4 apartments go up in flames in Newton Falls

NEWTON FALLS, Ohio - Four apartments were consumed by a fire and two businesses suffered water damage in Newton Falls on Saturday.

Newton Falls firefighters knocked out a blaze that began at about 4:30 a.m. at an apartment above two businesses on Broad Street.

"Police arrived on scene at the front, or A side, and evacuated all the residents in the second floor apartments. The south east apartment was the one initially involved, it spread to the other three on the second flood," said Rick Bauman, Chief of the Newton Falls Fire Department.

Bauman says the department won't know the cause until after the fire investigative unit processes the fire scene.

There was also extensive smoke and water damage to two businesses below, Healthy Treasures Health Food Store and Health Advocates.

The building, owned by the Talanka family, was damaged by the tornadoes in 1985 and was repaired. But Chief Bauman is not sure it will survive the fire due to possible structural damage.

But there is a silver lining. Firefighters were able to keep the blaze from spreading to five attached buildings. The entire block was constructed in the 1800s and the buildings share a common wall but no fire wall.

The Milton Fire Department, Garretsville Fire Department, Braceville Fire Department and the Warren Township Fire Department assisted Newton Falls battling the blaze for about seven hours.

No one was injured in the fire.