Residents unhurt after Southeast Fresno apartment stairwell catches fire

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Six people made it out of a Southeast Fresno apartment safely after a stairwell caught fire Monday afternoon.

Four adults and two toddlers were in the upstairs apartment at Ranchwood Condos on Lane near Chestnut, when the stairwell started smoking. Fresno firefighters say it's unclear exactly how the fire started but believe it began in a utility closet underneath the stairwell.

"A lady was trying to get my attention through the window, so finally I opened the window and she's like 'your house is on fire.' So I ran outside and looked and it was all smoking," said fire victim Felicia Fonseta.

"When we got here, you see the window open here, they were waving, they were trapped in there. The stairwell was on fire, so we ran up there and got them out," said Fresno Police Lt. Joe Gomez.

No one was injured in the minor fire. Firefighters cut open the utility closet to find the source of the smoke.