Fire leaves three families homeless

An apartment fire early Thursday forced three Spokane families out of their homes.

Firefighters were called to the North Cliff Terrace Apartments, 840 W. Cora Ave., just after midnight. One apartment was gutted, while two others and an office area suffered some damage, fire officials said.

Residents escaped without injury.

The apartment complex is made up of a series of buildings, and residents in the building where the fire occurred were evacuated.

Paula Peterson, who lived two stories below the fire, said she awoke to see a glow of fire coming from outside her window.

“When I woke up it was fully engulfed, and there were pieces of roof falling off,” she said.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

The three displaced families were being helped by the American Red Cross.