By Mark Woolsey

Cobb Fire Department investigators are leaning toward determining that the Smyrna-area apartment blaze which killed 3 people Sunday night was accidental.

The blaze broke out shortly after 10 p.m. at the Concord Crossing Apartments in the 500 block of Woodsong way, in unincorporated Cobb near Smyrna. Crews responding found heavy fire billowing out of a second-floor unit.

“The flames were coming out of the window on the front side of the building and threatening the third-floor apartment above it,” said fire Lt. Stephen Bennett.

“Crews pulled five people out and did CPR on all of them,” said Bennett, with Cobb Police helping.

Three of those in the apartment died, an adult and two children and an additional adult and child were critically injured, he said. A sixth person had smoke injuries and survived by jumping off a balcony.

In addition, about a dozen people were rescued from their apartments as firefighters used “ground ladders” to pluck them off of balconies. Some of those had minor injuries.

Bennett says eight apartment units were heavily damaged and in all 24 were rendered uninhabitable. About 30 people were displaced, according to fire officials.

Names of the those killed and critically injured have not been released.

Victims of the blaze consoled each other Monday. One of them who lived on the third floor the impacted building told Fox 5 News, “I still have my life. I have my son and my grandmother and my dog. But it’s honestly devastating.”

The woman identified as Arianna Hazel-Applegate continued: “I’ve built a life in there for 11 years and now it’s gone. And it just makes me really sad.”

She told the news station that her apartment was destroyed in the blaze.

The Red Cross was on the scene Monday assisting displaced residents.