COLUMBIA, S.C. — Columbia fire crews responded to a fire that destroyed three homes and damaged several others on Tuesday night.
This all happened around 6:50 pm, in the Summit Parkway, Founders Ridge neighborhood, in Columbia.
People who saw the fire said they could see smoke from blocks away.
The Columbia Fire Department had 14 units respond, with more than 50 firefighters who battled the flames.
One person was taken to the hospital, but their condition has not been released.
Chief Aubrey Jenkins believes the fire started in one home, but spread to others.
"Right now we don't know the cause of the fire, but when you have this kind of fire with this much heat, it's not unusual for it to be transferred to other houses that are close to it," says Jenkins.
Eight people lived in the three homes that were destroyed. The Red Cross is also responding to the destruction of the fire.
The son of two of the homeowners, who lost everything, says his parents were notified by a neighbor that their home was on fire, and that they watched their home burn from across the street.
"I don't know what it'd be like to lose everything," says Skip Winters. "You always say you worry about yourself, because you can't replace a person, but that's your stuff too."
He says he was concerned that it took fire crews about 20 minutes to get to the fire. Chief Jenkins could not confirm at the time of the fire, how long it took crews to begin putting the flames out.
The Richland County Fire Marshal is investigating the cause of the fire.