Residents displaced after Clearwater condo fire, officials say

CLEARWATER, Fla. - Clearwater Fire & Rescue are investigating after a condo complex caught fire Sunday afternoon. It happened at the Fountains at Countryside Condominiums on Winding Creek Boulevard around 3 p.m.

Quick-thinking residents got to safety after smelling smoke and seeing flames coming from one of the units.

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"I smelt a little bit of burning. I didn't think much of it. I thought maybe someone from another unit had made something and burnt it, but it kept going, and I kept smelling it," resident Eric Miller shared.

Crews with Clearwater Fire & Rescue as well as firefighters with Safety Harbor, Palm Harbor and Dunedin responded to the scene.

That's when Miller said he stepped outside and saw residents coming out of their condos.

"It was a lot of commotion. We actually helped a neighbor who lives across from us. We actually helped her to get her friend who was her neighbor. They've lived here for 18 years. We told the firefighters she was still inside. She was sleeping," resident Danielle D'Agostino recalled.

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D'Agostino said that's when firefighters broke down the front door and helped the woman get out safely. Crews with Clearwater Fire & Rescue as well as firefighters with Safety Harbor, Palm Harbor and Dunedin all responded to the Fountains at Countryside condo complex on Sunday afternoon.

At least 3 units sustained damage from the fire, according to officials.

"Our living room, they had to tear up a little bit. I think we're going to be able to go in but staying there I don't think is going to be an option," Miller said.

At least three units sustained damage from the fire. As of Sunday night, the Red Cross is helping displaced residents find a safe place to stay.

The official cause of the fire is still under investigation.