WOODBURY, CT (WFSB) – A firefighter was hospitalized after a response to a house fire on Ridgewood Road Extension in Woodbury on Sunday.
Fire officials said the firefighter was alert and conscious when he was taken to the hospital to be evaluated.
“If all goes well he will be released [Monday],” said Janet Morgan, Woodbury fire chief. “He was just kept overnight for observation.”
The second floor of the home collapsed with a total of four firefighters inside, fire officials said.
“They had just announced that they had put the seed of the fire out,” Morgan said. “And that’s when we heard a crack, the floor collapsed.”
Three of the firefighters were able to get out of the home on their own, while the fourth was trapped.
“He knew from his training that he needed to conserve air. So he was breathing very lightly to conserve his air,” Morgan said.
A mayday alert was called.
It took firefighters a total of 23 minutes to get him out of the debris.
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/WVMLBPVJ5BFAJGVGFYZ3QLY6OU.jpg)
“Everybody came to the back of the building,” Morgan explained. “Everybody got in there, moved the stuff that needed to be moved, did what needed to be done, and we got him out. Twenty-three minutes is an excellent, excellent removal time for what we had there.”
He was conscious and alert as firefighters worked to extricate him, and the fire chief said he was in good spirits with no apparent injuries.
“I just left him a short while ago. He’s laughing and joking and was in good spirits,” Morgan said.
Firefighters from multiple agencies helped to get the situation under control.
“I smelled smoke, and then I heard the sirens,” said Rick Daunis, an eyewitness. “It was pretty, pretty intense.”
The fire chief thanked the other agencies for their assistance and quick help.
The house had extensive structural damage and was being taken down.
At least one person has was displaced, firefighters confirmed.
“Sad for the people who live there,” Daunis said. “I mean, it’s not good to see your neighbor’s house go up.”
The cause of the fire was unclear, but firefighters said it appeared to have started in the kitchen.