We Believe

Residents, neighbors, Hoosier Woods employees, firefighters, disaster relief personnel and donors banded together to cushion the damage of Sunday’s fire.

The fire late Sunday afternoon at a Hoosier Woods apartment building off 38th Street in Anderson destroyed the second story of the building, displacing 48 residents. The loss of property was shocking enough, but this sort of fire often takes lives.

In this case, there were no deaths or serious injuries reported.

Neighbors sprang into action when they noticed puffs of smoke coming from the roof. They called 911 and went to the building to alert its residents. At least a few were unaware the building was on fire, and they might otherwise have been trapped. One man recounted how he went into the building to rescue two young children who were locked inside.

Firefighters arrived with ladder trucks to douse the flames from the sky and extinguished the bulk of the fire within an hour, then stayed on the scene to put out flare-ups.

The Red Cross found overnight housing for the displaced residents, and by morning Hoosier Woods employees were able to offer the residents apartments in another building.

Then the community responded in a big way by donating clothing, food, cleaning supplies, furniture, pots and pans, and other materials for residents who had lost their belongings. Hoosier Woods business manager Holly Ann Johnson said members of her staff received so many donated items to help the needs of the residents that they had been boxing up the remaining items and giving them to charities and churches.

“There are a lot of unselfish, good people in Anderson, that became clear the last three days,” Johnson said. “The amount of generosity was overwhelming.”

Madison County folks have a proven record of helping one another out when disaster strikes. The reaction to the Hoosier Woods fire and its aftermath is further proof.

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Holly Ann Johnson, business manager of Hoosier Woods, said Thursday that the needs of residents who lost property in the fire had been satisfied and that Hoosier Woods was no longer accepting donations.