Three fires in Jacksonville; 1 dead, firefighters escape serious injury

One woman is in critical condition after a fire in the La Esparanza apartments near Memorial Hospital on University Blvd. on the Southside

"This was basically almost the icing on the cake, to use the archetype cliché, of a busy day for the B-shift," says Jacksonville Fire/Rescue spokesman Tom Francis.

Francis says JFRD got the call around 2:30 a.m. and they arrived to find one of the apartment buildings burning from the bottom up. Firefighters had to enter the burning building after hearing reports of a person inside.

"They found an adult female in a bedroom on the floor, the walls already encased in flame. They brought her out and she was transported to UF Health where she's listed in critical condition," says Francis.

JFRD says that even though this is a large apartment complex, firefighters were able to quickly get the flames under control and keep it from spreading to other buildings. Francis says in all, there were about 60 firefighters on scene.

The cause of the fire is unknown at this time. The State Fire Marshal's Office is investigating.

The Red Cross is also assisting families living in the eight apartments that were damaged by the fire.

WOKV will update this story as more information becomes available.