Dozens displaced after Palatine apartment fire

Dozens of people have been displaced after Palatine apartment building caught fire and partially collapsed Sunday evening.

The Red Cross said 50 to 60 people were displaced. Luckily, no one was injured in the fire that started just after 5 p.m.

"It's awful," witness Sarah Martinez said. "It's going to affect many families in the area and we are very sad for them."

"I looked out the window and I just saw the building smoking, smoking," said Neftali Bustamante, who lives nearby.

Palatine Fire Dept. Deputy Chief Anthony Lavacchi said crews put out the fire that had spread to two three-story buildings at 12 E. Dundee Quarter Drive around 8:37 p.m.

Billowing black smoke flooded the skies as nearby residents watched the wreckage.

"We've got a three-story building, 24 units with major fire on the third floor. The roof has collapsed," said Hank Welch, a Red Cross volunteer Illinois disaster response manager.

The exterior of the building was left in shambles. The fire department said flames spread from building 12A to 12B Dundee Quarter, which are attached three-story buildings with a fire separation between them.

You could see right into people's units as their bedrooms burned, all of their belongings gone.

"It's devastating. You can see in that one," Bustamante said. "You can literally see the actual closet, the rooms inside. It hurts."

The Red Cross was on the scene helping those who were displaced. They plan to provide meals for residents on Monday.

"We are looking to see if we can find a location for shelter for tonight, so they're not sleeping in their cars," Welch said. "Some people might have family away that they can go to, which is great."

The fire is now out, but salvage and overhaul operations are still ongoing.

It's unclear what caused the fire.