NATCHITOCHES -- An early morning fire at the Indian Summer Apartment complex in Natchitoches destroyed 16 units, but no one was injured.


A resident reported the fire at 3:57 a.m., according to Natchitoches Police. The fire was contained to the 1200 building of the complex.

Building resident Shelly Roberts said two Wal-Mart employees next door were on a break when they spotted the fire around 3:50 a.m. They ran over to the building to warn residents to evacuate.

"We grabbed our cats and ran out," said Roberts, who lives in the building with her sister.

Roberts said residents gathered outside and could see flames on the left side of the building slowly crawling across the roof.

"Everybody from the right side of the building didn't think it would make it all they way across," Roberts said.

When the fire crews extinguished the blaze around 7 a.m., however, all of the 16 units had sustained damage, and nearly the entire roof had been destroyed, Roberts said.

While residents were allowed to collect what belongings they could, Indian Summer officials helped arrange for help from the Northwest Chapter of the American Red Cross and even put some residents into new apartments within the complex, Roberts said.

The cause of the fire is being investigated, but arson is not suspected, according to officials. The State Fire Marshal's office is investigating.

Reporters David Dinsmore and Mandy M. Goodnight contributed to this report.


Although there has been no decision on what caused the fire the complex was found to be over 40 years old.

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