NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — After their building burned down, some residents of The Slate Apartment Homes in the Bellevue neighborhood of Nashville were put in some vacant units of the apartment complex Saturday night.
Authorities reported no injuries to the folks who live there, but all the people who lived in the building have been displaced.
"It's kind of a very disturbing and difficult time," said Hina Raja, who had only recently moved into her apartment with her family a few months ago.
The Saturday fire ravaged a building at The Slate Apartments, forcing all residents of that building, including Raja and her family, to evacuate.
"They relocated us, like a new apartment they gave us, but it's a kind of a trauma, kids are crying, they are missing their things," Raja said.
On Sunday, many residents returned to salvage what remained of their belongings.
Ginger Hayes, whose best friend lives in the burned building, described the emotional toll of the situation.
"You don't really think about the small things until everybody's cleared away, so she's sitting at home now crying about her baby pictures of her kids, and her sentimental items from her parents," said Hayes, who lives in a different building at The Slate Apartments.
Metro Council Member Sheri Weiner has stepped in to help coordinate community support.
She said she created a Facebook page to connect donors with those affected, similar to her efforts following a 2018 fire at the same complex.
Click here to join the Facebook group created to help after this latest fire.
"The last time we used it, we had people who had things to share, and people that needed the things that were being shared," Weiner said.
Beyond material donations, Weiner said Bellevue residents are offering financial support through the Bellevue Community Foundation.
"Direct financial contributions will be accepted and then distributed by the way of gift cards through one of our area nonprofits," Weiner said.
Authorities continue to investigate the cause of the fire, initial reports from the caller suggest it may have started with an appliance.
"The details were it was an appliance fire, so we got on scene. we confirmed that we did have a fire in one of the first floor apartments," said District Chief Aaron Sparkman, Nashville Fire Department District 19.
Meanwhile, displaced residents like Raja and her family are trying to move forward with what little they could salvage.
"I think we'll not get anything out of it because it smells, you can see the apartment, that's all gone," Raja said.
I reached out to The Slate Apartments for comment on this story, but haven't received a response. I will post one when I receive it.
Click here for more information on donating items through the Facebook group.
Click here for more information on how to donate money to the Bellevue Community Foundation.
This story was reported on-air by Robb Coles and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Coles verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at robb.coles@newschannel5.com.
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