Just after 10 p.m., Lakeland Assistant Fire Chief Mike Williams said three floors collapsed on the north end of the building due to the weight of the water used to fight the fire.

LAKELAND — Twenty-four families are homeless after a fire ripped through the attic of their apartment building on Monday evening at Arbor Glen Apartments in North Lakeland, said Lakeland Assistant Fire Chief Mike Williams.

Firefighters arrived on scene at 5:24 p.m. to find flames shooting through the roof. No residents were hurt, but one firefighter was slightly injured by a fire hose. He was treated on scene and went back to work. In all, Williams said 60 firefighters from 17 units from the Lakeland Fire Department and Polk County Fire Rescue were on the scene late into the evening as smoke continued to drift from the building.

Just after 10 p.m., Williams said three floors collapsed on the north end of the building due to the weight of the water used to fight the fire.

Panicked residents arrived home, unable to go inside their apartments to retrieve their pets or belongings.

Amber Raymer, 23, was desperate to find her two cats, Oliver and Princess.

“There’s smoke all in the windows — that’s all I know,” Raymer said.

Williams said firefighters were going floor-to-floor, apartment by apartment, to search for animals.

"It's very tedious — they have to take a bar and pound the floor before they walk to make sure (the floor is) still intact," Williams said.

As Williams spoke, one firefighter — still wearing his bunker gear, boots, oxygen mask and helmet — walked up holding a gray striped cat he rescued from apartment 304.

The Red Cross was on the scene, helping people find a place to stay for the night and obtain any medications they needed.

There was no word yet on what caused the fire.

Kimberly C. Moore can be reached at kmoore@theledger.com or 863-802-7514. Follow her on Twitter at @KMooreTheLedger.