Apartment on North Park catches fire; no injuries reported

A fire Sunday night burned a first floor apartment at 234 North Park in Cape Gir­ar­deau, but left the rest of the eight-apartment building intact.

Only two of the apartments were occupied, one upstairs and one downstairs, said building owner Michael Blaylock.

Neighbors said the upstairs tenant threw a sheet out the window to escape, but Cape Girardeau firefighters reached him with a ladder before he had to scale the two-story building.

Firefighters said there was smoke throughout the building, but the other units were relatively safe because the doors were all shut.

The fire was contained to the downstairs apartment where it started and was put out with fire extinguishers and water from the truck tanks.

Three engine trucks and a ladder truck responded, putting 11 firefighters on the scene. Crews were still investigating the scene at 10:50 p.m.