Firefighters rescued an 80-year-old woman and a dog from a burning house in Deerfield Beach on Wednesday afternoon, a Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue spokesman said.
A woman called 911 about 4:20 p.m. after seeing her neighbor’s house on fire, spokesman Mike Jachles said. Rescue crews encountered heavy smoke and flames when they arrived at the house in the 5300 block of Northeast Eighth Avenue.
Firefighters rescue woman, 80, from burning home in Deerfield Beach
Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue saved an 80-year-old woman from a burning house in the 5300 block of Northeast Eighth Avenue in Deerfield Beach, agency spokesman Mike Jachles said. (Mike Jachles, Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue/Courtesy)
Firefighters searched the one-story, single-family home and found an 80-year-old woman in a back bedroom that was filling with smoke, Jachles said. The woman initially refused to leave the room, which was located next to the room on fire.
Rescue crews eventually helped the woman out of the house and treated her at the scene, Jachles said. The woman, whose name was not released, refused transport to the hospital, he said.
Firefighters went back inside the burning house to rescue a Rottweiler that was found hiding under a bed behind a pile of clothing, Jachles said. Crews lifted the bed, coaxed the dog out of the house and gave it oxygen.
Both the woman and dog were “doing fine” late Wednesday, Jachles said. A man and two boys were also in the house when the fire ignited but made it out safely before rescue arrived.
It took firefighters less than 15 minutes to put out the blaze. Fire marshals from the state and county investigated the fire and determined it had been intentionally set, Jachles said.
Firefighters rescue dog from burning house in Deerfield Beach
Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue crews found a Rottweiler hiding under a bed inside a burning home and helped it to safety, agency spokesman Mike Jachles said. (Mike Jachles, Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue/Courtesy)
The woman’s grandsons, ages 5 and 7, used a lighter to ignite a mattress propped against a bedroom wall, Jachles said. The boys were referred to the Broward County Juvenile Firesetter Prevention and Intervention Program, which is designed to educate children and parents about fire safety and the consequences of starting fires.
Investigators also learned there was a delay in calling 911, Jachles said. People at the house tried to put out the fire themselves using a hose, he said.
