One person dead after fire engulfs third-floor apartment in northwest Miami-Dade

Miami-Dade, Florida – One person was found dead Monday morning after a fire tore through a third-floor apartment in northwest Miami-Dade County, prompting a large emergency response and an investigation into what caused the blaze.

Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office deputies were called to the apartment complex near Northwest 14th Avenue and Northwest 103rd Street at about 6:30 a.m. after reports of a fire. When deputies arrived, they found the third-floor apartment fully engulfed in flames.

The fire was visible as emergency crews worked to get the situation under control. Residents in the building faced an immediate danger, and deputies began evacuating people from both the east and west sides of the building.

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Miami-Dade Fire Rescue crews also arrived at the scene and battled the flames. Firefighters eventually extinguished the fire, allowing authorities to begin searching the apartment and assessing what had happened.

During that search, firefighters made a grim discovery. A person was found dead inside the apartment, authorities said.

The victim’s identity has not been released. Officials also have not disclosed the cause of death, leaving investigators to determine what happened inside the apartment before and during the fire.

A nearby resident described hearing unusual activity shortly before the blaze was discovered.

“I woke up around 6 o’clock in the morning because I heard some screams,” Oscar Umana, who took cellphone video of the fire, said in Spanish. “There were some people fighting outside, so I came outside to look and when I looked, I saw the fire started right there in that building. That’s where the fire started from.”

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Umana’s account adds another detail to the events surrounding the early morning fire, although authorities have not said whether the reported fight was connected to the blaze or the death.

Following the fire, detectives from the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office Homicide Bureau responded to the scene along with arson investigators. Their involvement indicates that authorities are examining both the circumstances of the death and the possible cause of the fire.

At this stage, officials have not announced whether the fire was accidental or intentionally set. Investigators are expected to examine the apartment and surrounding area as they work to establish what led to the deadly incident.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation, and authorities have not released additional details about the person who died or what may have happened before emergency crews arrived.