Southwest Atlanta apartment burns down after tenants report vandalism

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — Part of a southwest Atlanta apartment complex was heavily damaged by fire overnight.

Firefighters were called to the scene at 2905 Springdale Road SW at around 5 a.m. on Saturday. No injuries were reported.

Medina Jett, the complex’s owner, said she bought the buildings a little over a month ago, hoping to revitalize them into a safe and affordable place for people to live. But overnight, a tenant called her to report someone breaking windows and firing shots into the air.

“And I got over here this morning only to find that one of the buildings is literally burning to the ground,” she added.

Jett said the unit that caught fire was vacant, but that she had spent the past month working to secure the property out of concern for exactly this type of incident.

“Me and my contractor, we were talking about different steps we could take, like literally sit in their car all night to guard over the property while we’re renovating it. And that seemed like such an extreme, but now I’m like, I don’t know what else to do. I’m at a loss for words,” Jett said.

The official cause of the fire remains under investigation.

This is a developing story. Check back with Atlanta News First as we learn more.