When firefighters arrived at 807 West Villard, they were faced with heavy flames on both the front and back sides of the building.

"The apartment door was left open so, it allowed the fire to work it's way into the stairwell," explains Bozeman Deputy Chief Greg Megaard.

After rescuing a woman from the third floor and making sure everyone had made it out safely, they focused on beating back the flames.

But it wasn't easy.

Propane tanks for barbeques, blown out windows and several apartment unit doors left open intensified the blaze.

Then the fire moved into the attic.

"That's where we had trouble getting into the attic to extinguish the fire. Because of burn time and other elements, we weren't comfortable putting a lot of guys inside or on the roof so, it became very difficult to get into that area. Once the fire reached the roof itself, we were able to put it out fairly quickly at that point," says Megaard.

It took at least 50 firefighters and two hours to get the blaze under control.

Yet, the struggle had only begun for residents.

Now, one of the biggest challenges they face is finding a new place to live. 

Already, their property manager reached out to managers around town expressing their need.  Until then, displaced residents are staying with family, friends or a local motel thanks to the Red Cross.

They're putting people up for three days, replacing medication, eyeglasses, contacts and providing a card for expenses.

The help offered goes beyond fulfilling a monetary need.

"A lot of people who go through this trauma need to talk to someone and so, we can get them some help with some mental health people that we have working for us," explains Red Cross Deputy Chair Disaster Action Team's Ken England.

The Salvation Army is also lending a hand.

"We are trying to take care of them the best we can. We have our social services open and running for them so far. We've offered some clothing vouchers so they can restock their clothes and also some sack lunches," says Bozeman Salvation Army Pastor and Administrator Niki Woollen.

The organizations say they'll do whatever they can to make things just a little bit easier during a very difficult time.

If you'd like to help, you can donate time or money to the Red Cross by calling 1-800-ARC-MONT.

The Salvation Army is accepting money and clothing.  You can call them at 406-586-9051.

If you'd like to donate food, you can take take donations to the Gallatin Valley Food Bank at 602 Bond Street in Bozeman.