UPDATE: Pershing Road Fire

An early morning apartment fire leaves two families displaced Monday.

Fire crews responded to a structure fire at 1201 Pershing Rd. in Zanesville just before 7 a.m. Zanesville Assistant Fire Chief, Doug Hobson, said the families living in the complex were able to escape the blaze with no injuries. The extent of the damage is unknown, but Hobson said the upstairs apartment is a total loss.

“When crews arrived on scene, the upstairs bedroom portion of the house was fully involved, so they immediately went upstairs, put a real good knock down on it, checked the life safety first of all of course, made sure everybody was out, did an immediate search of the house,” Hobson said.

The Muskingum Valley Red Cross is assisting both families. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.