Firefighters Battle Flames, Ice At Overnight BA Apartment Fire

Fire marshals are investigating a Broken Arrow apartment fire. Firefighters spent all night fighting the fire, and much of the day spraying hot spots to keep it from starting again, but flames weren't the only challenge.

With any fire you're going to have a lot of standing water; but when you've got freezing temperatures, some of that water can turn to ice, creating one more obstacle for firefighters.

A fire lit up the night sky at the Creekside Apartments near 51st and Aspen, as an 18-unit building went up in flames.

1/20/2016 Related Story: Fire Damages Broken Arrow Apartment Building Under Construction

Firefighters started out fighting flames from the air using a ladder truck, but they also fought the below-freezing temperatures.

“The pants and the coats keep us pretty warm. It's when you get your feet cold, and your hands, and your neck or your face, and the water sprays you - that can be kind of miserable at times,” said Broken Arrow Assistant Chief, James Annas.

Annas said once they're wet it's hard to warm back up, but the worst part comes when the fire is out.

Annas said, “You don't really notice it until a lot of the fire's knocked down and you're standing around for a few minutes, then you really appreciate how cold it is.”

Red Cross did its part to help warm bodies, and spirits, with hot drinks, water, snacks and pizza for the firefighters.

The building is destroyed, but it was under construction, so no one had moved in yet - although there were residents living nearby in another building in the complex.

“It's crazy. I just moved here a week ago, came from a small town. I didn't really expect the first week that this kind of event would happen, but here we are,” resident Trey O’Neal said.

Firefighters can't yet say what caused the fire. They said that could take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks.