A quiet North Charleston apartment complex turned into a scene of panic Thursday afternoon when a fire broke out inside a unit — and emergency crews discovered something far more disturbing than smoke.

Eight children. Alone.

According to the North Charleston Police Department, officers and firefighters were dispatched around 2:30 p.m. on March 12 to Arbor Square Apartments after reports of a structure fire. When first responders arrived, they quickly located the source of the blaze — but what they found inside the apartment raised immediate alarm.

Eight juveniles were inside the unit without any adult supervision.

Authorities say the building’s fire suppression system activated and managed to extinguish the flames before they could spread, preventing what could have easily turned into a mass-casualty tragedy. Miraculously, no injuries were reported.

But the questions came fast: Where was the adult responsible for these children?

Not long after emergency crews secured the scene, 29-year-old Janaina Ferreira arrived at the apartment — with more children in tow, according to police. Investigators soon determined that Ferreira had allegedly been operating an unlicensed daycare out of the residence.

Instead of a supervised childcare environment, officials say, the children had been left alone inside an apartment where a fire had just ignited.

Ferreira was taken into custody and charged with eight counts of unlawful conduct toward a child. She was later transported to the Al Cannon Detention Center.

Authorities contacted the parents of the children, and the South Carolina Department of Social Services has been notified as the case moves forward.

What sparked the fire itself remains under investigation, though officials have pointed to troubling possibilities. The North Charleston Fire Department initially cited a faulty aftermarket stove knob as a potential cause. But in a later update, officials said the fire may have been ignited by a book bag left on the stove — raising the likelihood that one of the children may have accidentally turned it on.

“Kids sometimes play with fire, sometimes they play with stoves,” Deputy Fire Chief Christan Rainey said. “We could have been having a totally different talk today and a totally different story.”

That “different story” — one involving serious injuries or worse — was narrowly avoided.

Instead, what remains is a case that underscores the risks of unregulated childcare and the razor-thin margin between routine and disaster. Eight children made it out unharmed.

But for authorities, the fact they were alone at all is the real fire still burning.