Investigators are now saying that smoking is to blame for a two-alarm fire that destroyed at least four apartments and damaged four others over the weekend.

It happened early Saturday morning at the Cobblestone Apartments near Cheyenne Meadows Road on the south side of Colorado Springs.

Those apartments are still unlivable, so the families here are staying with friends or in hotels. While fire investigators haven’t said exactly where the fire started, Timi and David Grulke say they think it started on their second floor balcony around 2:15 a.m. Saturday.

“Someone started banging on the door. When we got up, the whole balcony was up in flames," says Timi. That knock came from a neighbor and a passer-by who got the couple out of bed.

“We put our robes on and went to grab the cat. As he (David) got the cat, the glass door between the balcony and inside exploded. The fire spread really fast."

“The only smoke detector is near our bedroom and it's the furthest away from the balcony. We were outside and it still hadn't gone off yet," says Timi.

While the couple lost everything, they are grateful for the two good Samaritans. “We were very lucky."

The apartment complex requires all of the tenants to have renter's insurance, but it may take awhile to get that money, Timi says. In the meantime, the families say they are in need of donations. If you want to help out, contact Jan Guyer. Her email is jguyer@brightoncharter.org. She is a family friend of Timi’s and is organizing the donation drive.