news-record.com

HIGH POINT (MCT) — Two people were injured in a fire that damaged a southeast High Point apartment building Thursday afternoon.

A call reporting the blaze at 505 Meredith St., Apartment C, came in at 1:51 p.m. Before firefighters arrived, a woman in the second-floor unit where the fire occurred handed her 4-year-old son out a window to the child's father below and then jumped from the building, authorities said.

The child was not injured but the mother was taken to High Point Regional Hospital with what fire officials described as non life-threatening injuries. The father also was transported to the hospital later, said Denita Davis, spokeswoman for the High Point Fire Department.

The identities of those involved were unavailable Thursday.

Smoke alarms apparently notified the apartment's occupants of the fire, the cause of which was under investigation Thursday. Davis said the accidental fire started in the living room and may have been caused by a malfunction with a heater.

Two pets that belonged to the occupants perished in the fire.

The fire was under control by 2:18 p.m. but caused heavy damage to the building, displacing the occupants of Apartment C as well as three people who reside in a neighboring unit. The other two units in the building were vacant.

Damages from the blaze are estimated at $90,000 to $95,000, Davis said. The High Point-Thomasville chapter of the American Red Cross responded to the scene and was assisting the displaced residents.