IFD: Woman dies after going back into burning apartment twice

LATEST: The Marion County Coroner’s Office on June 2, 2022, identified the woman as Sara Holt, 41.

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A woman died Sunday morning after she went into her burning apartment twice, according to the Indianapolis Fire Department.

Firefighters were called to a fire at the Louise Raines Residence building at Pennsylvania and East St. Joseph Streets at around 5 a.m. Sunday.

IFD found heavy smoke and fire on the building’s fourth floor.

About half an hour after arriving on the scene, firefighters found a woman inside a fourth-floor apartment.

Witnesses told firefighters that the woman evacuated the building with the rest of the occupants and then re-entered her apartment twice, according to IFD Batallion Chief Rita Reith.

After going back into the building a second time, the woman did not make it back out.

The other 45 people living inside the building were able to evacuate; several people were checked out at the scene and released.

The cause of the fire has been ruled accidental, but the specific cause of the fire is still undetermined.

Reith says people should not try to re-enter a building during a fire to gather personal items or pets. The toxic effects of smoke will render you unconscious in minutes and can prove to be fatal.