Fire damages apartments

Ten people were chased out of their homes in a predawn fire Friday at the Countryside Apartments, fire officials said.

No one was injured in the 3:18 a.m. blaze at 405 W. Bellwood Drive near Mead High School.

A woman suffered a minor burn to her face when she attempted to go back to her apartment to rescue a cat, which died in the fire, said fire Capt. Dan Walsh of Spokane County Fire District No. 9.

Another occupant suffered minor smoke irritation. Neither was hospitalized.

The fire apparently started on a back deck of an upper-story unit and spread quickly into the attic and roof.

An adjacent upper-story apartment also had substantial fire damage, and two units below were damaged by water from the firefighting effort.

“It was ripping along pretty good initially,” Walsh said.

The cause was under investigation, Walsh said.