HARTLAND, Wis. — The Hartland police chief confirmed six people are dead following an apartment fire this morning.
Hartland Police Chief Torin Misko said officials originally believed there were seven fatalities, but after further investigation announced there were six deaths.
WATCH: Chief Misko provides update on fatal apartment fire in Hartland
Chief Misko is asking that the local community avoid the area out of respect for the families. Officials have not identified the victims.
Hartland's village president Jeffrey Pfannerstill said the whole community is hurting after such a loss of life.
“It saddens me, it scares me, but I think it wakes us up to the fact that it doesn’t have to be a big city. It can be anywhere," he said.
The fire happened around 5 a.m. at a four-family apartment complex on Mansfield Court.
Officials said a criminal investigation is underway. When firefighters initially arrived, they found a large fire and began rescuing people from apartment units and balconies.
Chief Misko said an investigation into what started the fire is underway.
Fifteen fire departments and 9 police departments responded to the scene. The State Fire Marshal's office is investigating the incident along with the Waukesha Sheriff's Office, Wisconsin Crime Lab, and Hartland Police and Fire Departments.
Watch the news conference from Hartland Police:
The Red Cross said its disaster team is on the scene. A spokesman for the Red Cross said 10 people survived the fire from three separate units. Of the 10, five are children. Chief Misko says some escaped on their own and others were brought to safety by first responders.
“Our initial response was for life safety," he said. "Once we determined that we provided that life safety assistance, then things slowed down into more of a recovery effort at that point.”
The Red Cross says the children who survived are a 15-year-old, two 13-year-olds, a 12-year-old, and an 8-year-old.
Watch: A witness on the scene described what he saw.
The superintendent of Hartland Lakeside School District released a statement to families regarding the fire.
Dear Families,
This morning we were made aware of an apartment fire in the Hartridge subdivision. Some of our families have been affected but we have no further information at this time. We will be working with local agencies to support our students and families. Please keep these families in your thoughts.
We ask that you do not call our school offices. We have no information to share at this time. As soon as we receive information from the Hartland Police Department we will update our families. We appreciate your patience and cooperation.
