Colorado Springs firefighters said it was a damaged electrical cord that started an accidental apartment fire and forced several evacuations.

The fire happened at around 4:40 p.m. at the Vista Peak Apartments on Potter Drive in the Springs.

11 News talked to a family friend of the victims, Charlene Murphy, who said she's grateful that no one was hurt, but adds that the family is absolutely devastated and lost everything in the fire.

When firefighters arrived they said it was a hectic situation, but they were able to knock down the fire within 10 minutes.

"The fire was over the building, it was about 10 feet high," Murphy said.

We talked to two kids who live in the apartment next door and were home when the fire broke out.

"It was scary. Like, first I heard crackling upstairs and then, like, I looked out the window, there was debris going outside the window," Paul Lynch, 13, said.

"I was just panicking, like my heart was racing and I just was so scared," Jasmine Lynch, 12, said.

Firefighters reported children from nearby apartments were being handed out of windows to safety.

Murphy said it was her brother who helped a 5-year-old girl out of a window.

"(The girl’s) brother threw her out the window to my brother because my brother went upstairs into the smoke and into the flames to get this little girl," Murphy exclaimed.

She said a 7-year-old, a 2-year-old, and a 3-month-old were home with their mom at the time of the fire, they all got out safely. Two apartments were destroyed, one of which was vacant.

I'm told the family of seven displaced by this fire will be staying with family friends overnight, and getting help from the Red Cross. Everyone else in the building has been allowed back in their apartments.

You'll remember just three months ago a man died at the same complex from carbon monoxide poisoning. That was from an improperly vented furnace.