(UPDATED) Careless Smoking Triggered St. Louis Park Condo Fire

A fire that broke out at a St. Louis Park condominium complex shortly before 3:30 p.m. Tuesday—with temperatures near 100 degrees—put firefighters to the test, but no serious injuries were reported.

The fire ravaged several units of the Natchez Place Condominiums, 4625 Minnetonka Boulevard, though firefighters were able to quell the flames fairly quickly. The fire was caused by discarded smoking materials on the deck of a second-floor unit, according to the St. Louis Park Fire Department.

A Golden Valley firefighter was taken by ambulance as a precaution. Residents and firefighters were monitored on-scene for smoke inhalation, as well as heat exhaustion.

Fire crews from Saint Louis Park, Minneapolis, Hopkins, Golden Valley, Richfield and Eden Prairie responded to the scene. Firefighters worked in short shifts to avoid heat-related injuries; those not in the building got routine blood-pressure checks and took in plenty of fluids while they rested. The Red Cross and Salvation Army were on-scene to provide water and food.

Mike Dobesh, an assistant St. Louis Park fire chief, said upwards of 100 firefighters showed up for the five-alarm fire. The fire itself wasn't actually that large and would have normally required a much smaller response, but the heat and humidity made the situation anything but normal.

"The reality of fighting fires in 100-degree weather is you can't do as much as you normally would," Dobesh said. "If this was 72 degrees and low humidity, we probably would have been at a one- or two-alarm fire, at the most."

Several units sustained fire damage and about one-third of the condominium complex sustained smoke damage, St. Louis Park spokesman Jamie Zwilling said. Four units are currently unable to be occupied, Zwilling added. The rest of the building has power back and is open to residents.

Minnetonka Boulevard between Ottawa and Monterey avenues was shut down for several hours Tuesday afternoon but has since reopened.

Rich Grimes, who lives in a first-floor unit at the residence, said he was inside when he heard alarms going off, then other residents yelling to evacuate.

"You could smell it," Grimes said of smoke in the hallway. "I got right out."

Grimes, who had bypass surgery several years ago, said he was thankful that the stress and heat didn't overwhelm him.

"I don't want to go through this again, coming out to 100-degree heat," Grimes said.

Sarah Wolf was also inside the building when the fire broke out. She lives on the third-floor, and said she went out to her balcony when she first heard alarms. Wolf said she could see flames coming from the unit next to her's.

She got out safely, but cursed her bad luck.

"I bought the condo a week ago," Wolf said.