Two dead after South Austin house fire; cause of fire unclear, officials say

Two people and a dog died from injuries sustained in a house fire in South Austin on Wednesday.

Austin firefighters responded to 1006 S. Center St. shortly after 3 p.m. and found flames coming out of the back, Assistant Chief Andre de la Reza said.

Officials said four people and three dogs were in the home at the time of the fire, with two of the four people suffering fatal injuries. The other two had minor injuries. It's unclear how many people lived in the home. Reza said it's possible that more people could be found.

Reza said it's uncertain what caused the fire to start, as that will be determined in the Fire Department's investigation.

Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services took the two people with serious injuries to the hospital, where both later died, Capt. Christa Stedman said. No other information was available about the deceased.

Reza said that when firefighters made their way into the home, they faced a "heavy fire" with high heat and low visibility, along with "extreme hoarder conditions" that made it difficult to put out the fire. He also noted there were no working fire alarms in the home.

Two firefighters suffered minor injuries, Reza said.

The fire spread to a shed in the backyard, and firefighters put out the fire about 30 minutes after arriving.

Stedman said one of the people with minor injuries was taken to a hospital, while another was treated at the scene by medics.