Two adults killed in Decatur house fire

DECATUR, Ga. - Firefighters are investigating a deadly house fire overnight in Decatur.

Fire officials said the blaze broke out just before 2 a.m. Friday at a home on Line Street. The home is divided up into several apartments.

Two adults, a man and a woman, were killed in the fire, according to investigators. Their bodies were found in a basement apartment. Neighbors told us the victims were longtime residents.

Wanda Pitts, a neighbor who called 911, said she pounded on doors getting people to safety. She credits a dog barking with rousing her from sleep.

"My prayers go out to her granddaughter because she really loved her grandma. Now, her grandma and her man are gone, just like that," Pitts said hours after she escaped from the fire.

"She was such a nice lady, so nice. I just feel bad for her family. I guess I'm just glad if they had to die, they died together," said family friend Emmajoyce Long.

Residents in five other units are now being helped by the Red Cross.

Investigators are certain the fire started in the basement unit where the couple lived, but they're not sure how it started.

The seven other men and woman who live in the building are grateful they escaped, but saddened to know the kind woman who lived in the home 27 years couldn't make it out alive.

FOX 5 News has learned the victims' names, but is withholding those details until the DeKalb County Medical Examiner makes contact with next of kin.