Leslie Vasquez saw the flames shooting up from the roof of an apartment complex on Lake Drive in Newburgh. She then heard the barking of her friend's dog.
"The dog ran upstairs, and I tried to get the dog and I scooped the dog," she said.
The fire broke out Thursday afternoon. Close to 50 firefighters got it under control in less than a half-hour.
"The building has a very large attic area, so we had to combat that from end to end of the building," Newburgh Assistant Fire Chief Edward Petricek said. "It's probably about 100 feet long."
Residents stood by and watched as crews gutted the roof. Some were able to go back into their apartments to grab some personal items.
Fire officials say it will be months until the six families, about 19 people, will be able to live in the apartments again. The American Red Cross was on the scene and says they're helping anyone who may not have a place to stay in the meantime.
The cause of the fire is being investigated. No injuries were reported; officials say that's in part to the fact that the fire broke out during work hours.