2 people hospitalized, 2 dogs killed in central Fresno house fire

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Firefighters are sifting through debris left behind as they try to figure out what caused a central Fresno home to go up in flames.

The blaze took firefighters hours to control.

"Because of the belongings (the residents) had, access on both sides was difficult," said Battalion Chief Devin Mcguire. "We had power lines down on the north side so that limited access as well."

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Five people inside managed to escape, and two of them were taken to the hospital for minor injuries. Two dogs, however, died in the incident.

Neighbors, like Desiree Neves, say the flames grew by the second.

"Within minutes there were these huge plumes of back smoke, followed by humongous flames like 25 feet high," she said.

More than 40 firefighters responded to the home off of Weldon Avenue and Kenmore Drive

Mcguire says they brought in extra crews because of the high temperatures.

"We did bring additional crews out here because we know it's going to be excessively hot," he said. "We had three or four vegetation fires as well as a two-alarm commercial fire, many of these crews were on many of these fires as well."

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As crews rotated out, volunteers with the Community Emergency Response Team were on-site, providing firefighters with cold water and fans.

"Their health and safety is our primary concern," said program manager Carla Glazebrook. "Our volunteers set up a cooling area where they can bring their body temperatures down and lower their heart rate."

Despite the heat, fire crews pushed through, and say the cause is likely an electrical issue.