Several homes were destroyed and nearly 20 people have been displaced following a fire in Newark, officials say.

Firefighters received a call about a fire at an unoccupied residential building at 11 Seymour Ave. at 11:57 p.m. Friday.

Officials say the fire spread to two residential buildings at 13 Seymour Ave. and 9 Seymour Ave.

A third alarm was called just after midnight.

Fourteen families, which includes 17 adults and 11 children are being relocated, officials say.

The Red Cross says they are helping 34 people in seven families with temporary housing, food, clothing and other immediate needs.

All three homes have been deemed uninhabitable and will be knocked down at some point according to authorities.

Residents say it only took a few minutes before everything was engulfed in flames.

"The whole thing was fast. It started off as like a small site and then obviously, once you see a fire and it's that close proximity, you don't think about anything, you're just thinking about making it safe and exiting your home. And that's one not even like I said not even two minutes after we left the house escalated," says Fanta.

"I was so scared and such in like a panic mode. I was trying to grab my clothes to put on and grab to run outside. And when I ran outside I saw that the whole side of the house was on fire. Literally. I lost everything," said another resident.

Four firefighters were injured in a partial building collapse in the rear of 11 Seymour Ave.

They were taken to University Hospital for treatment and are in stable condition.