Residents at a Bell Walker's Crossing apartment building are salvaging what's left of their belongings after a fire tore through the 24-unit building Wednesday.
The flames damaged a good portion of the building off Gallaher View Road in West Knoxville.
The Knoxville Fire Department said the fire started on the balcony of a third floor unit and then spread through the attic. While some residents lost everything, others' belongings were left untouched.
KFD has said they believe the fire was an accident, but they haven't yet determined the official cause.
Many residents spent Saturday packing up what's left of their things.
"It's sinking in. You have to move on. You have to be grateful you weren't hurt and no one was hurt," said resident Laurie Houston. Her apartment on the first floor was untouched by flames, but suffered major water and smoke damage.
Houston has lived there for 10 years.
"I haven't been back in since I left for work on Wednesday," she said.
For safety reasons, residents in the portion of the building that saw the most damage are not allowed back in. Instead, restoration companies gathered anything that could be of value.
"It's a lot to process all at once and to not know or not be able to go in and see your things, but just have to have people helping the best they can," Houston said.
Residents on the side that saw much less damage were allowed to pick through their belongings.
"I was sure we just lost everything," Marija Vostinar said. Her apartment was left relatively untouched, while just next door was destroyed.
Vostinar is no stranger to loss. Civil War prompted her to flee from her home country in Serbia several years ago. She and her husband moved to Knoxville a year ago.
"It's kind of just piling up, bad stuff, you know. You just start to wonder when will it stop and when will you stop losing everything you own," she said.
Vostinar and her husband say they are grateful most of their belongings made it through the fire.
As for Houston, she said she plans to move back to the complex as soon as possible.
Staff at Bell Walker’s Crossing said they are unable to comment about the fire because of legal reasons. They are still unsure when residents will be able to move back in.