1 dead in southeast Las Vegas apartment fire; 17 families displaced

One woman was found dead after a Wednesday fire at a southeast valley apartment complex, according to the Clark County Fire Department.

The Clark County Fire Department responded at 11:50 a.m. to the three-story apartment building at 5421 E. Harmon Ave. for a "high" severity-level fire, the fire alarm site showed. The fire started in a second-floor unit but spread to all of the surrounding units, the fire department wrote in a release.

After the fire was extinguished, crews found a "deceased elderly female" beneath debris in the apartment where the fire originated, Deputy Fire Chief Jon Klassen said.

The American Red Cross is assisting 17 families displaced from their homes by the fire, the agency said.

Twenty units at the Canyon Point Apartment Homes, near the intersection of East Harmon Avenue and Boulder Highway, were affected by the blaze, the Red Cross reported.

Because two of the units were unoccupied, the agency is helping people from 18 apartments, said Red Cross spokesman Frank Rutkowski.

The cause and origin of the blaze were not immediately available, Klassen said. He said the fire was out within 50 minutes of crews' arrival.

"Red Cross Disaster Action Team volunteers are meeting with the residents and will ensure everyone has a safe place to sleep and has food, clothing, medication and other essentials," the Red Cross wrote in a news release.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Contact Kimber Laux at klaux@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Find her on Twitter: @lauxkimber.