Studio City couple describes harrowing escape as fire engulfs their home

A couple in Studio City heard loud bangs late Wednesday, then noticed a house burning beside theirs on Sunswept Drive, they told CNN affiliate KABC.

“Well, we were sitting in our house watching television,” a man recalled. “And heard what seemed like gunshots,” a woman continued. “We … looked outside, saw our next-door neighbors’, fire coming out of their home. Took a second and went back out again.”

The man “went to grab some things, and I said, ‘Our house is on fire,’” she said. “We just grabbed our phones, the computer, our dogs and ran out.”

The blaze had ignited around 8:52 p.m. and quickly spread to adjacent brush, the Los Angeles Fire Department reported.

Over 50 firefighters responded.

Brandon Jones got a text message from his friends down the affected street about their house burning, he said.

“By the time they saw the fire, they couldn’t get out,” he said. “The fire line had already been established. And up here on the hill, the roads are just so small. There is barely any room for fire trucks. So, by the time the fire trucks had positioned themselves, they began to put the fire out. There was just no way they could get down.”

“By the time I got here, firefighters had already had everything set up, and the fires were being put out,” Jones said, adding his friends were fine and their home undamaged.

By 10 p.m., firefighters had knocked down the blaze, which created small spot fires and damaged neighboring buildings, the fire department said. No injuries were reported.