Kaiser Court Residential Fire

At approximately 5:10 AM, MFRD crews responded to the 5500 block of Kaiser Ct for reports of a residence on fire in the area. Neighbors reported that an elderly resident could still be inside of the home.

Upon arrival on scene, fire personnel confirmed heavy flames present at the front (side A) of a single-story residential structure. Engine 1’s company officer sprinted to the home and prepared to enter to attempt a rescue. With information from neighbors, the Captain was able to locate a bedroom at the B-C corner of the house.

While his crew began suppression efforts, the Captain made entry through the bedroom window and quickly searched the room. Unable to locate an occupant, he carefully made his way into the hallway and entered a room adjacent to the affected area. Performing a right-hand search, he came upon an elderly gentleman on the floor near a living room window.

As crews continued to arrive on scene and perform fire suppression efforts, the firefighter was able to pry open the window and lift the resident towards it. With the aid of crews lifting and pulling outside of the window, the 73-year old, male occupant was forced out of the burning home.

The victim was unconscious and not breathing, as paramedics rushed him to a nearby rescue truck (ambulance), where medical teams immediately began resuscitative efforts. During transport to an area hospital, medics were able to obtain return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC). Medical interventions continued as care of the patient was transferred to emergency department staff.

Tragically, however, and despite everyone’s best efforts, the trapped victim succumbed to injuries sustained from inhalation of heated smoke and toxic gas.

Firefighters were able to successfully extinguish the fire with minor incident. One firefighter sustained minor leg burns and was treated at the scene.

Preliminary investigation revealed that the fire started accidentally, stemming from a space heater which ignited nearby curtains. There was no evidence of smoke alarms/detectors in the home.