CUMBERLAND — Three police officers and one resident were hospitalized after a fire in a Cumberland apartment building early Tuesday.
Emergency personnel responded to the fire at about 2:30 a.m. at Cumberland Manor Apartments in the 11700 block of East Ninth Street. A large fire was coming from one of the apartment building’s four housing units.
Officers banged on doors and entered apartments to wake up and evacuate residents.
Flames trapped a Cumberland police lieutenant and resident, who escaped through a second-floor window with the help of firefighters and a ladder.
Four officers were transported to local hospitals for smoke inhalation and cleared later that morning in good condition. One female resident was transported to Eskenazi Hospital in critical condition.
Unattended food in a cooking pan is initially thought to be the cause of the fire. Investigators also noted a lack of working smoke detectors.
Police departments from Cumberland and Indianapolis responded along with fire departments from Indianapolis, Buck Creek Township and Sugar Creek Township.
