A firefighter was rushed to the hospital for smoke inhalation while fighting a massive two-alarm house fire in River Oaks late Thursday night.
The firefighter was part of the first fire engine crew to arrive at a house fire in the 4000 block of Meadow Lake Lane, near San Felipe and Weslayan. Witnesses initially reported that an apartment was on fire there, but the structure in question was actually a large, two-story house, according to Houston Fire Department Deputy Chief Blake White.
White said the first crew saw heavy smoke and fire shooting out of the second story of the building, so they went inside to make a quick attack on the blaze. When they realized the fire was more intense than they originally thought, the crew made its way out of the building.
That’s when one of the firefighters started to run out of air in his oxygen tank, White said.
The firefighter made a “mayday” call for help just as the crew was exiting the building. He was rushed to Memorial Hermann Hospital for smoke inhalation, White said.
Dozens of other firefighters helped put of the fire, which lasted more than an hour and a half. HFD arson investigators are working to determine the cause of the fire, although White said the homeowner claimed the cause was electrical.
Jay R. Jordan covers breaking news in the Houston area. Read him on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and our subscriber site, HoustonChronicle.com | Follow him on Twitter at @JayRJordan | Email him at jay.jordan@chron.com | Text CHRON to 77453 to receive breaking news alerts by text message
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