Jackson responds after apartment fire

Six tenants of an apartment building in Jackson can take some comfort after a fire nearly cost them their lives that a suspect was quickly apprehended and is being held in the county jail on first-degree arson charges. Jackson police acted swiftly after learning an earlier dispute apparently resulted in the deliberate setting of a fire in the building's entry hall -- blocking the only door out of the building for the upstairs occupants.

All six tenants and two visitors were forced to jump to the ground to escape the rapidly spreading fire that gutted the building. They can be thankful that they were not seriously injured.

Passers-by were alert enough to offer assistance as soon as the fire was spotted. And the Jackson community has responded with its generosity in providing assistance to the displaced residents of the building.

All in all, what could have been a tragedy has been offset by good police work and community assistance -- exactly what folks in Jackson have come to expect.