ST. LOUIS — The St. Louis City Fire Department put out a fire that started Wednesday morning in the 3800 block of Minnesota Avenue in south St. Louis.

Captain Garon Mosby said they were able to pull the people inside of the building out to safety. The fire broke out around 11:00 a.m.

“There were two occupants at home at the time of the fire,” he said. “They were evaluated by our EMS personnel, but they will not be transported. We had a firefighter injured while fighting the fire in the basement. He’ll be ok.”

Mosby said the fire may have made its way up from a lower level.

“We had a tremendous amount of smoke showing they made an aggressive interior attack we located or discovered that the fire was in the basement primarily,” Mosby said.  

Charles Carter was one of the people inside the building. 

“The last thing I remember was somebody pulling me out the front door and now I’m talking to you,” he said.  

Carter said his dog, Zenata, first alerted him by clinging to him as the smoke entered the building. 

“All I can tell you is that Zeneta is alive, I’m alive, and I don’t know what happened except for the whole house is gone,” Carter said.

He is now left wondering what’s next as brutal winter conditions punish the St. Louis region.  

“We got a van. If I have to, I’ll sleep in there tonight. But we’re going to make it one way or another. We’re going to make it,” Carter said.