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More than a dozen people evacuated after early morning fire in Brooklyn Park

A small fire in the boiler room of an apartment building were forced residents to evacuate Monday.

BROOKLYN PARK, Minn. — A fire at a Brooklyn Park apartment building forced residents into the cold early Monday morning, but officials say no one was hurt. 

Just before 2 a.m. Monday, Brooklyn Park Fire Chief Dan Smith told a KARE 11 crew that firefighters were called to an apartment building for smoke in one of the units. 

When crews arrived to the 5800 block of 73rd Avenue North, they found and extinguished a small fire in the boiler room or the boiler room office between the second and third floors of the building. Within the hour, Smith said, crews had the fire put down. 

Smith said that fighting a fire in the cold can be dangerous for emergency responders, but that with temps around 13 degrees, he said it "wasn't too bad." 

In the winter, when people have to get out of their homes in case of a fire, Smith recommended preparing a small emergency kit, with blankets, snacks, a bottle of water and an extra phone charger. 

Often, firefighters will call on the Red Cross or other organizations to help people stay warm while crews battle a fire. Smith said Monday's relatively warm temps, at least for a January morning, meant they didn't need that extra warmth. 

"Usually we try and get some buses out here for we know it's going to be long term to get people in a heated area if need be," Smith told KARE 11 crews. 

No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire is still under investigation. 

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