Delano Herald Journal

Serving the communities of Delano, Loretto, Montrose, MN, and the surrounding area

Montrose apartment residents displaced by blaze



Area communities’ emergency personnel came quickly to the aid of residents of the Rosehaven II apartment complex in Montrose Wednesday night.

Montrose Assistant Fire Chief Matt Menard reported his department was paged to a fire in the senior apartment complex at 11:52 p.m.

Menard arrived on the scene rapidly, and immediately noticed smoke and flames coming from a single unit in the building.

Menard said that his department fully assessed the scene upon arrival. Although it appeared everyone was out of the building, the department completed an interior search of the 18-unit complex. No one was found inside.

Many residents sought shelter in buildings nearby. Others were taken into warm, running vehicles that were on scene (see separate story.)

The Montrose Fire Department, with the assistance of several other departments including Delano, Waverly and Howard Lake, proceeded to attack the fire. A secondary search of the building was also completed.

Three individuals were transported to area hospitals via ambulance for treatment of minor injuries and smoke inhalation.

Menard said that ambulances responded from a widespread area, ready to assist with multiple injuries if necessary. Units from Howard Lake, Glencoe, and Allina and North Memorial health care systems were all standing by.

Rescue helicopters were called off as it became evident they would not be necessary.

Menard indicated impacted apartment dwellers had “true community support.” In addition to the array of professional emergency response teams, the City of Montrose also opened its community center in case apartment residents needed a place to gather or spend the night.

After the fire was extinguished and the smoke was cleared, firefighters went back into the building and did a door-to-door search for residents’ pets.

“We got everything from birds to cats and dogs,” Menard stated. “There were no lost pets.”

The state fire marshal was on scene until 8 a.m. Thursday morning. The cause of the fire remained undetermined at press time, but does not appear intentional.

Menard said the city officially declared the apartment building uninhabitable Thursday morning, due to the utilities being shut off and the smoke damage incurred.

He anticipates several residents of Rosehaven II will be displaced for several weeks to a month.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.