The community is pitching in to help the families left homeless following a raging blaze Wednesday morning in Summit Hill.

The fire, determined to be electrical, caused extensive damage to the triplex, a three-story structure, shortly after 11:30 a.m. at 134-136-138 E. McMurtrie St.It left seven people homeless, and killed several pet cats.The residence at 134 E. McMurtrie St., was occupied by Marian Pavlick and her father, Vince.The house at 138 E. McMurtrie St., where the flames were the most intense, is the residence of Jim and Karen Smith and their three children, sons, 14 and 17, and a daughter, 16.The dwelling between the families was empty.Lois Gasser, store manager at Redner's Warehouse Markets in Nesquehoning, said a fund was set up for anyone who would like to make a donation to the Pavlick family.'A popping noise'No one was home at the Smith house when the fire broke out. Vince Pavlick was home at the time and heard a popping noise. When he looked outside, he could see the flames two doors away.When firefighters arrived, they encountered heavy flames erupting from all three porches in front of the connected dwellings.Firefighters managed to knock down the majority of the exterior flames, but not until most of the damage had already occurred.Several cats in the Smith house died. Firefighters were able to get one cat out of the house, and efforts were made to revive it by firefighters, personnel from Lehighton Ambulance and Franklin Klock of the Carbon County Environmental Education Center. A cat inside the Pavlick house also died.Fundraising"Marian Pavlick is a customer service representative who works here, so we wanted to set up a fund at Mauch Chunk Trust for anybody who would want to make a donation to the Pavlick family for their losses in the fire," Gasser said.We want to help them get back on their feet."Andrea Davis commented on the Save Our Bubble Facebook page that the Pavlick and Smith families are "overwhelmed with clothing donations and are very thankful for everything.""However, since they are currently residing in hotels and with families until they are permanently in a home again there isn't much storage," Davis said. "Therefore, since so many still want to help until their insurance companies take care of things, we decided between the Summit Hill Borough, Save Our Bubble, and Heritage Center, that gift cards to use at time of need would be better, so grocery store, clothing stores, Walmart or Visa cards would be more of a help."Drop-off locations are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday in the borough, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday at the Heritage Center and 2-6 p.m. Sunday at the Heritage Center.The borough will distribute the cards to the families.Fundraising websites have also been set up to help the fire victims.To access the site for the Smith family, go to

www.gofundme.com/2tpcghdf.To access the site for the Pavlick family, go to

www.gofundme.com/94pgzd8k.The Salvation Army and the American Red Cross provided assistance to both families.Ronald Yuricheck, assistant fire chief in Summit Hill, said a state police fire marshal investigated determined the cause was electrical and originated in the Smith residence.Yuricheck praised the response, saying that during the day it is often difficult to get many volunteers because of employment schedules."There was a real good turnout and they did a great job," he said.Borough fire Chief Shawn Hoben added, "I thought the cooperation from all the neighboring towns was outstanding. Everybody worked together, the buildings are still standing."Hoben said he heard all three homes may be able to be saved.Ron Gower contributed to this report.