Man escapes high-rise fire by scaling down a 19-story building

A Philadelphia man on Thursday scaled down the exterior of a 19-story building to escape a fire. 

The fire began around 9:30 p.m. on the third floor of Holden Tower, located at 4400 block of Holden Street. The fire took place in the trash shoot and released smoke on all 19 floors of the building. 

It was reported that many apartment dwellers with mobility issues were carried out. However, in some cases, ABC shared that officers went to individual units. 

Philadelphia Fire Assistant Chief Harry Bannan told ABC that, “We did make some forcible entry on some units. We received calls from our fire communication center and fire department units. We went to those apartments to check on those residents.”

ABC reports that the fire injured a total of seven people, four were building residents, and the three were police officers. They also reported all injuries were due to heat exhaustion and smoke inhalation.  The man who scaled down the building was reportedly uninjured. His name was not disclosed.

Officials on the scene told the outlet that sprinklers were active. To put on the fire, crews flooded the trash chute. The fire was reportedly under control as of 10:56 p.m.  

Residents were evacuated, but they were all able to return home later that evening.  

WATCH: Man scales down side of building in West Philadelphia