Fire Rips Through Newport Beach Apartment Carport

NEWPORT BEACH (CBSLA) – Two families are looking for temporary housing after a large fire tore through a carport at a Newport Beach apartment complex in the early morning hours Tuesday.

The fire was reported at 1:52 a.m. at a two-story apartment complex in the 1000 block of Buckingham Lane. Newport Beach Fire Department crews arrived on scene to find heavy flames and smoke engulfing a carport.

One woman told CBS2 she heard screaming, ran outside, and saw smoke and flames. Another resident said he heard explosions.

"I just heard a couple of explosions, or bangs, and I saw the flames above the apartments," resident Jim Morris said. "And I saw smoke coming out of the windows, so I was worried about my neighbors."

Crews were able to extinguish the flames before they spread to any apartments, the fire department said. There were no injuries.

However, two units suffered smoke damage and are temporarily uninhabitable. The Red Cross was assisting the displaced families with temporary housing.

Five vehicles were either destroyed or heavily damaged.

Fire department investigators are still unclear if the blaze was accidental or intentional in nature. They are looking for any nearby surveillance video that will assist in determining the cause.

A financial estimate of the damage was not confirmed.