BUFFALO, N.Y. -- A house on Buffalo's West Side was destroyed in a two-alarm fire that spread to two neighboring homes.

The fire broke out around 5:10 a.m. Wednesday in a house on Herkimer Street. A Time Warner Cable News photographer said the flames from the home spread to the attic of a neighboring home and damaged the home on the other side.

Inside at the time were Shawn Incorvaia and his girlfriend. Their 4-year-old daughter wasn't home at the time. He said he was awoken by the fire, which exploded through a window.

"We were sleeping in the living room right outside the window and I woke up and the window broke and the flames came in the front room," he said.

"We went to go out the front door, but it was too hot. We tried to get out the back door, and when we went to go up the alley, we couldn't get up. We had to go over the neighbor's fence to get out."

The fire was brought under control around 6:30 a.m. Fire Commissioner Garnell Whitfield Jr. said crews did a good job considering that the fire got a good head start on them.

"The West Side is tough," he said. "It's tough to get the equipment up the streets, very narrow streets, and the houses are very close together."

One firefighter sustained minor injuries after debris got in his eye. The occupants of the two neighboring homes all got out safely on their own. There's no immediate word on how the fire started. 

The home that first caught fire is slated for emergency demolition. A total of $140,000 in structural damage was done to that 2.5-story home, with another $50,000 damage done to the contents.

A neighboring home saw $80,000 in damage done to the structure and $40,000 to the contents, with a partial attic collapse. The other neighboring home saw $10,000 in damage done to the structure.

"That's our job," Whitfield said, "to preseve life and property. Our guys do a great job with that. So we're very proud of them, very proud that they were able to save that house."

The Red Cross is helping the affected families. A total of 11 people are being assisted with clothing, food and temporary housing.