Criminal charges have been filed against a man after a massive fire spread through rowhomes in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on Thursday.
The three-alarm fire started around 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 26 along the 700 block of Cedar Street and spread to multiple homes. Large flames rose from the roof of one of the homes, and black smoke billowed throughout the area.
Upon arrival, officials crews found one home engulfed in flames and received reports of an individual trapped in the basement of 721 Cedar Street.
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Firefighters made their way to the rear of the structure and successfully rescued one female through a basement window, according to officials. The situation escalated to a second alarm at 4:35 p.m. and a third alarm at 4:49 p.m.
Officials said all on-duty Allentown firefighters responded to the incident, and the fire was declared under control at around 7 p.m.
Santos Mota-Ramirez, 60, of Allentown, was charged Friday for his alleged role in the fire. According to court documents, he was charged with two counts of attempted homicide, two counts of aggravated assault with attempts to cause injury, three counts of aggravated arson with bodily injury, causing a catastrophe, and recklessly endangering another person.
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Court documents state that Ramirez attempted to cause the death of two people: Nohemi Guzman-De Santos and Niovel Lopez-Gutierrez.
The court documents also indicate that Ramirez attempted to stab Guzman-De Santos before starting the fire.
Officials said three civilians were taken to the hospital, one in critical condition, according to officials. Additionally, four firefighters were transported to the hospital with minor injuries. Seven structures were affected, and the fire displaced 30 people.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
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