At least seven people have died in a fire at an apartment complex in Wisconsin, police have confirmed.
Authorities say that a criminal investigation is underway after the blaze broke out at the four-family building in the city of Hartland early on Friday morning.
Hartland Police Chief Torin Misko told reporters that when they arrived on the scene, firefighters and police officers evacuated people from inside the burning building and from balconies. No information on the ages or identities of the victims has yet been made public.
“This is a tragic incident for the community and for the first responders involved,” Chief Misko said. “We ask that the community respect the privacy of the families and refrain from visiting or coming to the immediate area.”
He was not able to say whether investigators believe that the fire was deliberately set.
“Unfortunately, this is still a very active and dynamic investigation,” Chief Misko said. “We’re still learning a lot of information as we work through and we will be back at a later time to update you.”
Officials say that 15 fire departments and nine police departments responded to the incident, which took place around 26 miles northwest of Milwaukee.
The Red Cross has its disaster team at the scene and says that 10 people, including five children, survived the fire from three separate units.
The surviving children include a 15-year-old, two 13-year-olds, a 12-year-old, and an 8-year-old.
