Flames ripped through the basement of a two-family house on Bowdoin Street earlier this afternoon, leaving residents shaken.

The fire broke out around 1 p.m. at 102 Bowdoin St., sending firefighters to the scene. The fire was quickly snuffed out before it could spread to the rest of the building.

Outside the basement door in a paved walkway, a couch, armchair and some other possessions smoldered. A few fire engines lined the street as one firefighter gave the basement a final dousing.

“There was heavy smoke on arrival,” said Deputy Chief Steve Howe. “Engine 5 made an aggressive interior attack. The flames were knocked down in 10 minutes.”

No one was injured by the blaze, the cause of which is under investigation. Due to the damage, electric power to the house was shut off and no one was allowed inside unescorted.

“It was a fire that started in the basement,” said one woman, who lived on the first floor. “It didn’t spread from the basement because they came so quickly.”

“Mainly the stuff that got burned was hers, mine and our daughter’s,” said another resident.

Howe commended the men of Engine 5 for their quick response and all other emergency personnel responding to the scene.

“It didn’t spread to the second floor,” Howe said. “It was a great job done by all.”