Our Burnsville editor was out of town this week, so I covered an apartment fire for him. The fire destroyed 6 apartments Thursday and cleared out an entire 70-unit complex, leaving about 200 people without homes for the night.
Luckily, most people had family or friends they could stay with. The Red Cross helped others find a temporary place to stay.
By the time I arrived, police tape was everywhere and I could see no way of getting where the fire had burned the building. I was lucky to meet up with a guy who said he knew a way to the other side. After crawling through brush along a steep hill running side-by-side with 35W, we got to other side of the apartment building where I met several residents who had been heavily affected by the fire.
I really got the sense, while covering the fire, that I got a better story than other reporters because I was willing to wait, observe and listen to the residents.
You'll find the article here and more photos here.
