Neighbors, Volunteer Firefighter Rescue Residents from House Fire

A Branchville volunteer firefighter helped rescue the occupants of a burning house before Prince George’s County Fire/EMS units arrived Thursday morning.

The fire in the 6200 block of Seminole Place in Berwyn Heights injured two residents and one firefighter, according to fire department spokesman Mark Brady’s Twitter account.

The two residents of the burning house – a woman in her 60s and her father, a man about 80 years old -- were rescued by three bystanders before fire crews arrived, Brady said. The two residents were taken to an area burn unit for treatment and are listed in fair condition.

One firefighter suffered minor injuries.

“If it were my family I hope someone would do the same,” volunteer Bill Miskell told WUSA TV.

A neighbor told the TV station he saw the elderly man trapped on the first floor and pulled him to safety. The neighbor then ran inside the burning home and told the woman to crawl toward him. That’s when Miskell arrived and helped pull her out.

Fire officials told WUSA the house did not have working smoke detectors.

Fire officials have repeatedly urged residents to check their smoke detectors to ensure they work after three people died in separate house fires in late December and early January in Laurel, Bowie and Capitol Heights.

The cause of Thursday’s fire is under investigation, but authorities believe it started in a bedroom. Brady said damage is estimated at $75,000.

READ ALSO:

• Officials: Family Nearly Died from Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
• Red Cross, Prince George’s EMS Team Up for Day of Service
• Fatal House Fire on New Year’s Day in Laurel
• County’s Second Fire Death Within 48 Hours Comes Christmas Morning

»A house on Seminole Place in Berwyn Heights sustained $75,000 damage and two residents were burned during a Jan. 29 fire. Photo from Prince George’s County Fire Department via Twitter