A fire Monday night at a Hinesville apartment complex displaced three families.

The six-unit building on Frasier Circle had three units occupied at the time of the fire about 10 p.m.

When firefighters arrived, flames and smoke were coming from one apartment on the left hand side of the building.

Khanh Tran and his wife, Therese Del Fie Rio, who live next door to the unit which was heavily damaged, said they were playing on their computer when the man who lived alone next door asked for a fire extinguisher. Tran did not have one, but took a cooler full of water to the apartment and tried to put out the fire.

Tran said the flames had spread to the ceiling, and he went back to his apartment to gather his belongings. But as they were gathering their things, smoke began billowing into their apartment so they left their things on the living room floor and got out.

Lt. Gene Long of the Hinesville Fire Department said the burned apartment sustained heavy fire damage, while the adjoining units sustained smoke damage. Long said no one was injured.

The Red Cross was called to assist the displaced families.