INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis firefighters battled a fire at a northeast side apartment complex Wednesday evening.
The blaze at Bayview Club Apartments, near Shadeland Avenue and East 75th Street, was reported around 6:45 p.m. July 24.
The view from an Indiana Department of Transportation traffic camera showed flames and thick smoke coming from one of the buildings.
According to the Indianapolis Fire Department, at least 35 residents have been displaced. They were receiving services from the American Red Cross.
An Indianapolis Fire Department spokesperson said one firefighter was treated for a slight injury.
IFD was assisted at the scene by Lawrence firefighters.
PHOTOS: Apartment fire on Indianapolis' northeast side
Investigators are probing whether the fire was sparked by a lightning strike.
"I heard a loud boom," one tenant told 13News. "It sounded almost like a sonic boom that went off, so I got up and looked out my back door and didn't see anything and kind of turned away. I came outside and looked and saw the building up in flames and people and fire trucks everywhere. It's just very devastating for the people who are going to be homeless until they figure everything out."
One mother told 13News that she and another man went door-to-door to help get everyone out.
"The building shook really hard, and all the outlets started popping and cracking and sparking, so it scared me," the mother said. "So, I shut all the lights off. So, I'm just going to wait for my sister to get home, but I'm like, 'it's taking her (sister) a really long time to get home. Where she's at?'"
Her sister was outside yelling for her: "Get out of the house, get out of the house, it's a fire."
"I look up, and there's smoke, and it's just everywhere," the mother said.
The sisters, who wanted to remain anonymous, relived Wednesday night's fire.
"Me and a gentleman, who had jumped the fence from working at the construction site over there, we were trying to pry doors open because there was no fire alarm to pull on the outside," the mother said.
She said the fire started in the attic.
"They ended up cutting the top of the apartment, and it engulfed, and it was horrendous," the mother said.
The sisters returned Thursday morning, nervous about what they were walking into. They found mostly flooding where she left laundry from the day before.
"I have a 2-year-old. All of my son's stuff is in there. All of my stuff is in there. I had just grocery shopped. All my groceries are done. I got my keepsakes out, my most important keepsakes," the mother said.
Now, she's staying with family while she waits on insurance and makes sure she's healthy.
"I'm going to go to the doctor and get checked just because I breathed a lot of smoke," the mother said.
Thankfully, she and all of her neighbors are expected to be OK.