HOUSTON – Two units are being considered a total loss by the Houston Fire Department.
One of those units is a town home in a gated community. The other is a nearby garage apartment, officials said.
Crews were dispatched to a residence around 12:45 a.m. Sunday at 1509 Michigan St. in Montrose.
When the first crew arrived, the home on fire was described as "a big ball of fire" by Douglas Harrison, deputy chief with the Houston Fire Department. Flames reached as high as 30 feet.
A total of five units were damaged in the fire, Harrison said. Cars that were parked on the street were also damaged by the fire, Harrison said.
Crews said they could not immediately tell how or where the fire started. "When the first unit got here, there was so much fire, they couldn't tell" where it originated from, Harrison said.
One firefighter was transported to an area hospital after one unit collapsed and sent debris flying, hitting him, Harrison said. He's expected to recover.
No residents were injured.
Resident Greg Grove said he lives across the street from the unit that initially caught fire. He said that just before the fire broke out, he could feel his house shaking, but there was no noise that accompanied it.
Then, a few minutes later, he heard an explosion and went to his balcony. There, he saw the two units burning and fire crews on scene.
The homes are being built by Pelican Builders, according to the company's website. The town home complex is a gated community of 22 homes and "offers a more substantial scale and sense of place in the ever popular Montrose," it said. "The homes at this new project by Pelican Builders will offer timeless architecture, high ceilings, open floorplans, and rooftop terraces."
VIDEO: HFD gives update after town home under construction catches fire in Montrose