UPDATE: Family of five loses home in Mechanicsville fire - KWWL.com

A Mechanicsville family is without a home this evening after their house burned in a fire.

It happened earlier this afternoon on E 1st Street.

Fire officials say they were called to the scene because somebody heard an explosion.

However, they aren't sure if the fire caused the explosion or if the explosion caused the fire.

The fire chief says the blaze may have started in a stairwell, then spread to the attic.

"We couldn't get to the attic right away," said Lonni Koch, Fire Chief.  "It was hard. We tried going up on the outside but it ended up the attic got on fire so it was hard to control.

Five people lived there but no one was home during the fire.

"We were concerned about the little pre-schooler and the grandmother because we knew that they're usually there during the day so that was one of our big concerns initially," said Koch.

Three pets were home at the time of the fire.

Officials do not believe they made it out of the house.