BELLAIRE — A late afternoon blaze damaged a Bellaire home and likely claimed the lives of some pets on Friday.

The fire was reported shortly before 3 p.m. First responders arrived at the Rosser Avenue residence to find that the street was relatively narrow, and several emergency vehicles quickly lined up outside the house.

Gerald and Charlotte Bruce of Bellaire were watching the firefighters at work. They said they were the ones who reported the blaze.

“We pulled up, and I saw the smoke from the top of the roof and I told my husband: ‘I believe her house is on fire,'” Charlotte Bruce said.

Gerald Bruce said he called 911 while Charlotte Bruce called the resident at her workplace. He said they also alerted a neighbor who uses oxygen that the nearby home was burning.

The Bruces said the resident of the home that burned was known to take care of cats.

“I think she lost some cats,” Gerald Bruice said. “I don’t know whether they got them out or not.”

Charlotte Bruce said the losses will surely hit hard.

“She’s just devastated,” she said of the woman who lived at the home.

Smoke was rising from the house, but there were no flames visible from outside. Firefighters with breathing equipment entered the structure.

Bellaire Fire Chief Tim Bell said the majority of the fire was extinguished by late afternoon.

“It was in the walls in the back of the house, so we got the bulk of that knocked out. So right now we’re just pulling walls and looking for hot spots,” he said.

Bell said the majority of the fire was contained to the first story of the home. He said firefighters were able to save the structure, but the interior was heavily damaged.

“It’s pretty bad. I’d say most everything on the inside was a total loss,” he said.

Bell said the cause of the fire has not been determined.

“We’re looking for a source,” he said, adding that the Ohio State Fire Marshal has been notified. “It’s under investigation.”

Bell confirmed that no people were hurt in the fire.

“Some pets perished,” he said. “We’re still looking for them.”

Bell said there was one difficult moment when firefighters found that a nearby hydrant was not operational. The Belmont County Tanker Task Force was activated to assist, and one tanker was used. Bell said firefighters had to tap a hydrant uphill from the home.

“We got good water on the back side of the house. We had the hydrant down here that didn’t work, so we had to do some swapping around,” he said. “They was expecting (the hydrant) to work, but I guess that’s what you get for having an old town.”

He said once water was established, the firefighters were able to quickly douse the flames with no danger to the surrounding structures.

Bell said first responders from Shadyside, Bellaire, Neffs and Martins Ferry were on scene. A vehicle from Bethesda was also observed.