An early morning blaze ripped through eight townhouses in East Anchorage. According to Anchorage Fire Department spokesman Tom Kempton, at around 4 a.m. the condos on East 41st Court, off of Baxter Road, flamed up as fire spread from townhouse to townhouse.

As firefighters worked to control the fire, three were removed from the scene due to a natural gas explosion. They were sent to and eventually released from the Alaska Regional Hospital. No serious injuries occurred.

The natural gas was also responsible for fueling the fire, which normally would have been shut off by the fire department, however the fire melted the valves before they were able to get to the scene, said Kempton.

The fire spread from the back deck of a middle condo unit, where it then ran up the roof and eventually spread across to the rest of the adjoining homes, Kempton said. The cause of the fire has yet to have been determined.

When firefighters arrived, one home was fully engulfed. In total 50 firefighters responded to the scene.

No residents were harmed by the fire.