Early-morning blaze empties senior housing

An early morning two-alarm fire at a senior citizens' complex in Dundalk damaged several apartments Wednesday and sent hundreds of residents fleeing from the building, according to Baltimore County Fire Department officials. The blaze started about 6 a.m. in an apartment on the eighth floor of the Center Place Apartments, in the 100 block of Center Place, a spokesman for the Fire Department said. A preliminary investigation found that the fire began in a trash can, likely by a lit cigarette, fire officials said. Two people were taken to an area hospital with minor injuries. Fire officials say the blaze did not spread beyond the apartment, but that other dwellings sustained water damage.

-Brent Jones