At about 3:47 p.m. today, firefighters from Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue were called to a reported apartment fire at the St. James Apartments in the 11000 block of Southwest Hall Boulevard in Tigard. Multiple callers to 911 reported a fire in an upstairs apartment at this location, with a possible fire victim located outside. 

First-arriving units from Tigard Station 51 located a fire victim at the entrance to the apartment complex, and the apartment involved in fire at the rear of the complex across an open courtyard. Crews from TVF&R and Metro West Ambulance began to immediately provide lifesaving treatment to the patient, while additional fire crews began to attack the apartment fire.

The fire was confined to a single, upstairs apartment unit with no fire spread to adjacent units. The patient was the only occupant home at the time of the fire. Three additional residents of the apartment will be displaced as a result of the fire. All other occupants from the building were able to return to their apartments after firefighters cleared the scene. 

The patient, an adult male, was transported to the burn center at Legacy Emanuel Medical Center in Portland. His condition is currently unknown.

Firefighters did locate an unconscious dog inside the apartment while searching for other victims. The dog was transported by Tigard Police to a 24-hour veterinary clinic in Tualatin for treatment. The status of the animal is unknown at this time. 

Firefighters from TVF&R were assisted on scene by Lake Oswego Fire Department, Metro West Ambulance, and Tigard Police Department. Fire investigators from TVF&R are on scene and will be working through the night to determine the cause of the fire. 

The apartments had working smoke alarms but did not have a fire sprinkler system. When a fire sprinkler system is present, the likelihood of injuries and costly damage is dramatically reduced. More information about fire sprinkler systems can be found here.