A fire killed two people and gutted a Southwest Roanoke apartment early Saturday.

Firefighters were called to a blaze in the 500 block of Sixth Street Southwest at 2:56 a.m., said Assistant Chief Ralph Tartaglia, acting spokesman for the Roanoke Fire Department. The first crews arrived to find heavy flames coming out of the front door and window of the apartment, which is attached to Gary's Bar and Grill.

Firefighters searched the apartment and found a man and a woman, Tartaglia said. Both people died at the scene. As of Saturday evening, police had not released the names of the individuals, because they had not yet notified the families.

Tartaglia said he did not want to speculate on the causes of death, but he said the bodies would be examined by the medical examiner's office in Roanoke.

The fire was contained by 3:15 a.m. The cause is still under investigation, but Tartaglia said it did not seem to be suspicious.

Gary's Bar and Grill was open Friday night, and the managers had locked up about 2:30 a.m., Tartaglia said. The apartment is separate from the bar, and there is no way back and forth between the two.

Tartaglia said firefighters got to the scene quickly, but it was already too late.

"They got it knocked down real fast, got in there and got the people out, but there was nothing we could do for them," Tartaglia said.