A resident of the Brook Village Apartments, in North Providence, is evacuated to the city’s senior center after yesterday’s fire.

The Providence Journal / Richard C. Dujardin Richard C. Dujardin

NORTH PROVIDENCE — The 140 residents of the Brook Village Apartments at 2072 Smith St. were forced to evacuate their 11-story high rise yesterday after a fire broke out in a third-floor apartment.

Fire Chief Albert Bertoncini said firefighters were able to quickly extinguish what began as a sofa fire soon after they arrived around 1:15 p.m., but not before it sent a light smoke to every floor of the building — enough to affect the breathing of many elderly residents.

Nine residents were taken to local hospitals — five to Our Lady of Fatima and four to Roger Williams Medical Center — for smoke inhalation or heat exhaustion.

In addition, Mayor Charles A. Lombardi arranged to have a bus transport 30 elderly and disabled residents to the town’s senior center — the Salvatore Mancini Resource & Activity Center.

“I think we were very lucky this occurred in the afternoon,” said Lombardi. “If this happened in the middle of the night we could have had serious problems.”

Since the main elevators, in keeping with standard practice, were shut off, firefighters went from floor to floor to assist residents down the stairs.

One emergency service elevator was used to move the wheelchair-bound residents.

Jennie Feragne, 89, recalled another fire that occurred soon after she and her husband moved into the high rise seven years ago. “Both of us just had eye surgery and we came out of the building with our eyes all puffy. That was at 3 in the morning.”

Jean Beeley, 81, said she and about 20 residents were finishing up a meal in the activity room when they got word to evacuate.

Mayor Lombardi, who is an ex-volunteer firefighter, said engine companies and rescues from Providence, Johnston, Cranston, Smithfield and Lincoln responded to the fire.

By late afternoon, it appeared that residents in all but three apartments — those that suffered fire or water damage — were going to be allowed back in, with the American Red Cross offering accommodations for those who could not.

Lt. Gregory Unsworth, the North Providence fire marshal, said there was no cause yet found for the sofa fire.

rdujardi@projo.com