Houston firefighters faced challenges at their first blaze of the new year, apparently caused by fireworks.
The new year had just gotten underway when a blaze broke out at the Bayou West Condominiums on Club Creek Drive in Southwest Houston.
When firefighters arrived, they were told by a witness that some kind of fireworks landed on a balcony and then there were flames.
"They were shooting off fireworks, and particularly the rockets, they were shooting the ariels, they must have hit the balcony and the roof area because...that's where we're seeing the most damage," according to a Houston Fire Department spokesman.
Initial attempts to extinguish the blaze were frustrated because of low water pressure in fire hydrants, so crews had to work extra hard to get water to the front lines.
Water pressure was restored later, but a second alarm was called, with as many as 60 firefighters working on the blaze at one time.
By the time the fire was out, as many as 16 units were damaged, leaving perhaps two dozen people without a place to live.
The American Red Cross is headed to the fire's location to offer help to those who need it, according to fire offiials.
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