A 41 year old Abilene woman died overnight in a downtown Abilene fire.
Stephanie Renee Huestis was apparently trapped in her second floor apartment.
The first thing people saw was the smoke.
"I thought it was like a garbage can on fire or something" said a man who called 911 on the fire.
An Abilene Firefighter in the area noticed the smoke coming from the building and was the first on the scene.
Once they got on scene, they immediately new it was much more than just smoke.
"Because it being two stories, they went ahead and made it a second alarm fire" said Lt. Jeremy Williams with the Abilene Fire Department.
A second story apartment on top of Arts Custom Center was where the flames were coming from, and news that there might be someone inside spread quickly.
"We heard a woman scream in the corner window, it was really loud, it was just an awful scream" said a witness to the fire.
At first, firefighters tried to go inside the building, but were called back because it was just too dangerous for them.
"Because of the extreme heat and the fire venting from the roof, he (Battalion Chief) pulled them (firefighters) back out, and we were able to attack it from an exterior stand from there.
As fire crews worked on the fire, people who knew the woman who lived in the apartment began showing up and hoping for the best, but finally hearing the worst.
"We have a 41 year old female who was deceased from the fire" said Lt. John Brunett with the Abilene Fire Department.
Fire investigators say the fire started in the kitchen but are still investigating the cause of the blaze.
Stephanie Renee Huestis was apparently trapped in her second floor apartment.
The first thing people saw was the smoke.
"I thought it was like a garbage can on fire or something" said a man who called 911 on the fire.
An Abilene Firefighter in the area noticed the smoke coming from the building and was the first on the scene.
Once they got on scene, they immediately new it was much more than just smoke.
"Because it being two stories, they went ahead and made it a second alarm fire" said Lt. Jeremy Williams with the Abilene Fire Department.
A second story apartment on top of Arts Custom Center was where the flames were coming from, and news that there might be someone inside spread quickly.
"We heard a woman scream in the corner window, it was really loud, it was just an awful scream" said a witness to the fire.
At first, firefighters tried to go inside the building, but were called back because it was just too dangerous for them.
"Because of the extreme heat and the fire venting from the roof, he (Battalion Chief) pulled them (firefighters) back out, and we were able to attack it from an exterior stand from there.
As fire crews worked on the fire, people who knew the woman who lived in the apartment began showing up and hoping for the best, but finally hearing the worst.
"We have a 41 year old female who was deceased from the fire" said Lt. John Brunett with the Abilene Fire Department.
Fire investigators say the fire started in the kitchen but are still investigating the cause of the blaze.
