EDINBURG - Fire officials are investigating two structure fires in Hidalgo County.

Edinburg Fire Chief Shawn Snider said, combined, the two fires sent five people to the hospital.

He told CHANNEL 5 NEWS the fire department received a call Tuesday to a house on Efrain Street at 3:30 p.m. He said the flames destroyed a three-bedroom wood frame home with a garage attached and a vehicle.

Snider said four people inside the home managed to escape but were checked out on scene for smoke inhalation.

He said an Edinburg firefighter was taken to a nearby hospital due to a fall while fighting the flames.

Snider added fire officials believe to know what may have caused the fire.

“This fire is being investigated by the city fire marshal… (It was) determined to be in a back bedroom associated with a window unit,” he explained. “A lot of them are hooked up with extension cords. A lot of them are hooked up with strip boxes and if they have too many things plugged into them, they can cause a short of a fault. And before that happens, it can start melting the plastic and catch things on fire.”

Snider said his department has put those displaced by the fire in contact with the American Red Cross.