All residents and pets safely escaped a third-floor fire that broke out Tuesday, Jan. 22, in the evening at the Brittany House Apartments in west Bellevue.

The fire was first reported shortly after 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 22. Calls that followed the initial report described smoke in the hallway, smoke that reached hallway detectors and activated alarms, said Camari Olson, lieutenant and public information officer for the Bellevue Fire Department.

The large amount of smoke and the fire being confined to one unit gave responders some difficulty when trying to locate the fire source. “There wasn’t a lot of heat in the halls,” Olson said. Responders contained the fire to the single apartment and prevented it from extending up into the attic space.

Emergency responders successfully rescued one resident from her balcony. When the resident noticed smoke billowing over their door, they refrained from opening the exit and instead waited on the balcony for assistance.

One dog was brought out from the building during the fire. Other concerned residents discovered their pets were fine when allowed to re-enter their living spaces.

The Bellevue Fire Department was first on scene and arrived there in a little over four minutes, Olson said. Other units responded from Redmond, Kirkland, Woodinville and Mercer Island.

One resident who lived in the involved unit remains displaced after the fire. Other residents were able to go back to their apartments by the end of the evening Tuesday.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.