Pocono News Section

Fire Victims Need Help

Fire Victims Need Help - Monday, December 7, 2009 at 3:29PM EST

Reported by: Laurie Monteforte
Monday, Dec 7, 2009 @ 03:29pm EST

STROUDSBURG, MONROE COUNTY - A State Police Fire Marshall is trying to figure out what caused an apartment building fire in Stroudsburg Saturday night.

Monroe County's Emergency Management Director told Eyewitness News the fire at the Carlton House left 27 people homeless. Matthew Davis is one of them. He lost everything. He cried, "A lot of my daughter's pictures - I don't even know if they're all right you know. I got pictures of my kid, all my clothes, all my important papers, gone. I thank God that I'm still here."

Davis is one of about a dozen fire victims now staying at a Red Cross shelter. He said, "The Red Cross is a real big help. God Bless them, they're here for us."

Red Cross Volunteer Coordinator Katie Broda said, "This is what the people donate for. So we're here to provide the services."

The Red Cross set up the shelter in Stroudsburg's First Presbyterian Church. Davis said, "If it weren't for the church I don't know where we would be."

Reverend George Taylor said, "We were only all too happy to work with them and open up our facility."

The Red Cross, The Salvation Army, and several local businesses are providing food, clothing, and money. Broda said, "That's the thing that we're most concerned about always that everyone is safe and ok and thankfully in this case they were."

Residents can stay in that shelter through the end of the week. After that, they're not sure where they'll go. Davis shook his head, "I have no idea. Only God knows what is in store for us."

The Red Cross encourages the community to drop off donations for fire victims at the Stroudsburg Seventh Day Adventist Church on West Main Street.