BROCKPORT, N.Y. — ​A number of heartbreaking stories were written as dozens of people lost everything after an early morning fire swept through the third floor of one of the Viking apartment buildings in Brockport.

What You Need To Know

  • A fire at the Viking apartment buildings in Brockport displaced dozens of people

  • The building is demolished, with some items salvaged

  • American Red Cross is assisting those in need of relocation

​Kirstie Oddo watched as demolition crews knocked down her apartment unit, a place she and her 4-year-old daughter called home for the last two years.

“I woke my boyfriend up. I ran in her bedroom. I grabbed her. I walked down the stairs. When I walked down the stairs, there was a guy that lived above me who was burned severely and fell in front of me. I had to walk around him with her in my arms, I couldn’t help him. I told him I can’t help you because I’ve got to get myself and her out,” Oddo said.

“Our daughter called us a little before 6 a.m., and said her apartment was on fire. And just kind of really chaotic,” said Scott Grosso.

It was a long drive in from Rome New York for the Grosso family, but worth it to know their daughter made it out safely. Emily Grosso is a senior at SUNY Brockport. 

“When I called my dad, the whole roof was engulfed in flames, so that was scary,” Grosso said, a resident of Viking Apartments.

Through the debris and rubble left behind, there were acts of kindness. Lowe’s of Brockport supplied food and boxes so people could pack up whatever belongings they were able to salvage.  

“Everyone needs a little bit of a helping hand, so it wouldn’t hurt to always help your neighbor,” said Andrew Irlmeier of Lowe’s of Brockport.

As painful as it was for residents to watch the demolition, many realized that things can be replaced but people cannot. 

“I didn’t lose everything. I lost my materialistic things, which definitely is replaceable,” said Oddo.

The American Red Cross was also on scene assisting those who need help relocating.