Fire heavily damaged a Jefferson County Housing Authority apartment on Rose Lane in Mt. Vernon early Wednesday night.
Mt. Vernon City Firemen say the fire started in a closet in a middle unit of the building with six apartments.
Smoke was showing from outside when firemen arrived, but once they opened the door they found a hot smoky fire. The fire had spread to the kitchen before being knocked down. There was heavy smoke and heat damage throughout the apartment.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
The Red Cross assisted in relocating the family who lived in the unit who were not at home when the fire began.
Mt. Vernon Police had evacuated the occupants of the other five units in the building, but they were allowed to return after the fire was put out.
The fire call came at 5:30 Wednesday night. Firemen were on the scene for about two hours. Jefferson Fire provided mutual aid on the scene and Woodlawn and Kell
Firemen covered other Mt. Vernon fire stations.
