Two second-floor units sustained damage as roof beams tore through sheet rock ceilings.

One unit was occupied at the time by a husband and wife and their infant. No one was injured.

In total, eight units are now uninhabitable because they all share one boiler, said Fire Chief Glenn Kramer.

"They are all going to be out of there for quite some time because they cannot get heat or water to any of the eight units without rebuilding the middle units", he said. "So, until the middle units get rebuilt totally, no one is going to be allowed back in."

That could take at least one month, the chief said.

Nine adults and six children have been put up in hotels by the Red Cross.