Milwaukee apartment fire at 22nd and Hampton, several residents hurt

Apartment fire near 22nd and Hampton

Several residents of an apartment complex near 22nd and Hampton suffered critical injuries in a fire that broke out Tuesday afternoon, Jan. 13.

MILWAUKEE - Milwaukee firefighters battled a fire at an apartment complex near 22nd and Hampton on Tuesday, Jan. 13. 

Apartment fire

What we know:

A 911 call regarding the fire came into dispatch at 1:37 p.m. Tuesday.

Apartment building fire near 22nd and Hampton, Milwaukee

Officials said more than 20 apparatus were called to the scene, including engines from North Shore Fire Department. 

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The Milwaukee Fire Department said in a news release that there are residents from the complex with critical injuries. 

Officials also noted the apartment complex does not have a sprinkler system. 

Apartment building fire near 22nd and Hampton, Milwaukee

Reaction

What they're saying:

"I got to point out to you here. This is 197,684 ft². You put this building together, 230 units, 315 separate beds. And here again, we have a building with no sprinklers," said Milwaukee Fire Chief Aaron Lipski. "This building was built in 1979. So we are working to find out precisely what the code was and that moment that allowed this building to be built without the full complement of sprinklers."

Milwaukee Fire Chief Aaron Lipski

"There have been far too many people in the city of Milwaukee over the course of the last year, plus, who have been negatively impacted by fires. We want to see that number go down," said Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson. "All of us will continue to beat the drum to make sure that we get, retrofitted apartment buildings, multifamily units, in the city of Milwaukee so that individuals who live in our city, do not suffer the consequences that we saw here today in this apartment building."

Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson

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"How could they build in 1979 without sprinklers? How could anybody even make that decision or have that be a desire at the time of construction? And I'll tell you why. It's money. It's because it's expensive to put sprinklers in. It costs more money. You squeeze less profit out of the development. That's why nobody's going to convince me otherwise," the fire chief said.

Milwaukee apartment fire news conference

Milwaukee's fire chief, mayor and an alderman spoke about an apartment fire near 22nd and Hampton that left several residents injured. They stressed the importance of sprinkler systems.