Early morning fire empties three Jefferson City apartments

Jefferson City fire crews responded to a call at an apartment building in the 600 block of Clark Avenue around 4 a.m. Friday.

Crews said they arrived to find the empty, first-floor apartment filled with smoke, and found the source of it was a small smoldering fire in a bathroom.

Officials told ABC 17 News that the fire was quickly extinguished, but not before approximately $15,000 of damage was done to the building.

Two other apartment complexes were evacuated and the American Red Cross was called to assist with temporary lodging for those residents.

The assistant fire chief said the cause of the fire is still under investigation, but appears to be accidental.