MANILA, Philippines (January 11, 2013)--A fire swept through three adjacent hotels in the Philippines, killing three American retirees, one South Korean and two Filipino women, authorities said.

Disaster response official Angelito Layug said one of the Americans was trapped on a staircase and the two others died in their rooms early Friday in Olongapo city, a former U.S. naval base west of the capital, Manila.

The fire broke out in the small hotel buildings that are next to each other at around 3 a.m. Friday and was put out three hours later.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.