ALOHA, Ore. — A three-alarm fire early Wednesday morning in Aloha displaced 17 people , with Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue calling the apartment building a total loss.

One woman who escaped the blaze said she was fortunate to survive, especially given that she's deaf and could not hear the fire alarm go off.

"If I [didn't] wake up, I would have died because I’m not able to hear it," said Heather Fenner.

Fenner said she fell asleep on her couch the night of the fire. Around 3 a.m., she woke up to the smell of smoke.

“I went to get my son out from his room, and the dog, and left, I tried to get back inside, but I had a hard time because everything falling apart on me, smoke," said Fenner.

Fenner’s 12-year-old son, their dog and two cats were inside at the time. She said she rushed to

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