Neighbours are being credited for saving a Surrey man who was stuck inside a home during an overnight fire.
The occupant living inside the duplex, at 88th Avenue and 127th Street, had a hard time getting out and started yelling for help around 1:30 a.m. A neighbour heard his cries and came to get him out.
“We noticed the black smoke burrowing out of the top of the window and I said ‘the place is on fire,’” said the neighbour, identified only as Steve.
“We tried to kick the door in but couldn’t kick it in. So I ran back inside the house and grabbed a hatchet and chopped away, and chopped the lock off the door.”
Crews say it was an easy fire to fight because the home is small. The blaze started because the man was smoking in bed and a mattress caught fire, according to investigators.
The tenant was sent to Royal Columbian Hospital with burns, but is expected to live.
The home is damaged; however, it is slated to be redeveloped.
