Fire damages several homes in Central Fresno

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Ten people are displaced after a fire quickly spread in a Tower District neighborhood. The fire erupted before four o'clock Tuesday afternoon near Calaveras Street and Floradora Avenue in Central Fresno.

Jenna Lorenz, an #abc30insider, took video of the flames and said she was in a swimming pool with her kids when the flames broke out at the house behind her.

"I heard about five, six big bangs in there. I don't know what it was it was some kind of explosion," said Lorenz. She said once she got her kids to safety she ran next door to help her neighbor. The blaze had already spread into her neighbor's yard before she could get there.

"I held her baby, she untied her dogs and within two three minutes that whole fence was on fire their swing set was on fire," said Lorenz.

Fresno Firefighters don't know what caused the fire but they say embers blew from here to across the street and started three other fires in this neighborhood.

"The result of what we had here with multiple fires going we called in a strike team with five engines and a battalion chief," said firefighter Pete Martinez. The blaze grew so out of control they called in teams from Clovis, Reedley, Sanger, Orange Cove & Cal Fire. And the sweltering heat didn't help.

"The gear we wear is forty pounds, plus your airpack plus you're sweating...so it's very heavy gear," Fresno Fire Chief Kerri Donis.

The American Red Cross said they're helping ten people tonight who are displaced from their homes.