Investigators are looking for the cause of a house fire on Youngstown's South Side that forced four people and their pets out into Wednesday morning’s chilly temperatures.

The fire was reported just after 3 a.m. at a home in the 700 block of East Judson.

The first firefighter to arrive at the address reported smoke from the house.

Crews quickly extinguished the blaze, which officials believe started in a stairway.

Three adults, a nine-year-old child, and five animals escaped the fire unharmed.