Officials said it appears the fire started around 1:30 a.m. in an electrical box.
"An electrical fault had happened in the main panel box down on the ground floor. We had a significant amount of fire in the electrical panel and smoke throughout this sector of the building ," Battalion Chief Rusty Stein said.
Fire crews were unable to put the fire out completely until Progress Energy shut off power to an entire wing of the apartment complex. Stein said the electrical panel is badly damaged.
Several units remain without power and several families are displaced until Progress Energy can repair the electrical panel.
The apartment management offered displaced families vacant units to stay in.
The fire was contained to the electrical box. No one was hurt.
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