VANCOUVER -- A man is in critical condition with severe burns after being rescued from a burning home in Surrey.
Fire crews were called to the scene at 113th Avenue near 136th Street around 6:30 p.m. Friday, when they arrived flames were shooting out of the roof.
A neighbour, who was working in his yard next door says he heard “a few bangs” then saw flames shooting out of the home.
“I saw this smoke, this huge smoke and I asked my wife to get the phone and I called 911,” said Deepsingh Kalsi.
Neighbours stood on the street and watched as the home was engulfed in flames. Before fire crews arrived, witnesses say a man ran back into the burning home to rescue another man.
“I saw one guy went inside and grabbed the guy out and put him in the yard, he was all burnt, his head, face was all burnt,” said Sanjee Singh, who lives a few blocks away. “We tried to took a hose pipe form next door and gave him water but then 911 came over.”
Five of the people sent to hospital are said to be in stable condition, but a man in his 60s has severe burns and is in critical condition, according to BC Emergency Health Services.
Firefighters say they were not able to save the house, and instead worked to protect neighbouring homes.
“Our biggest concern was to protect the houses on both sides, and that worked very effectively,” said Surrey fire chief Wes Eaton.
But even then, Kalsi’s property was damaged. The windows on one side of his home were shattered and water went into the attic and through the house. Restoration crews worked fast Saturday to replace the glass windows.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
