Eight people are displaced after a two-alarm fire in Mahanoy City Thursday.

FIrefighters responded to a working fire at 309 W. South St. shortly before 10 a.m.

Mahanoy City Fire Chief Dan Markewicz said he saw “heavy flames blowing out the front window” in the living room upon arrival. He said the resident sleeping on the couch woke up to the smell of something burning and left.

The fire spread to 307 and 311. Including 309, all three homes had “severe fire damage,” Markewicz said.

A home at 313 had smoke and water damage, Markewicz said. He estimated the damage at “six figures” for all homes involved. He didn’t know if the homeowners had insurance. He did hear working smoke detectors, but doesn’t know which homes had them.

He doesn’t know if anyone else was at the other homes when the fire started.

Firefighters had the fire under control in about an hour, he said.

The fire “isn’t malicious or arson. It’s unintentional,” he said, adding the Mahanoy City Fire Department, police department and a state police fire marshal from Reading are investigating.

Markewicz said no pets were inside. No firefighters were injured. The Red Cross was called to the scene. A call to the Red Cross Greater PA Region was not returned.

The impending holiday helped by having more firefighters available to fight the fire, Markewicz said.

Responding to the scene were fire companies from Mahanoy City, Girardville, Ryan Township, Tamaqua, Shenandoah, the Ryan Township Ambulance, and Hometown fire police. A rapid intervention team from Englewood also responded. Firefighters from Pottsville and Ringtown covered Mahanoy City if needed.