Oct 7, 2008 5:00 pm US/Pacific
Four Fire Fighters Injured Battling Natomas Blaze
NATOMAS (CBS) ―
Four Sacramento City firefighters became trapped in the middle of a two-alarm house fire in Natomas, but despite suffering moderate to serious burns, all personnel escaped from the blaze alive.
The fire started Tuesday morning at a two story house on Stilt Court near San Juan Road and Interstate 5, sending up a billowing plume of black smoke that could be seen for miles. Fire crews arrived and quickly worked to extinguish the blaze in the unoccupied house.
Four firefighters had worked their way up to a second story room when their water supply stopped -- the fire had burned through their hoses.
Fire officials say the crew may have faced a flashover, an extremely dangerous situation that often proves fatal for firefighters.
"A flashover is when everything in a room -- everything from floor to ceiling -- gets so hot it ignites," said Captain Jim Doucette from the Sacramento Fire Department. "It turns into a big ball of fire, basically."
With no easy escape, one firefighter jumped out of a window and another dove down a flight of stairs. Two more had to be rescued by other firefighters.
One of the fire fighters, 39-year-old Captain Jeffery Helvin, was taken the hospital for serious injuries. Three other firefighters -- Christopher Berquist, 30, Bruce Gee, 26, and Eric Ely, 23, were treated and released for moderate to minor burns.
If they did indeed escape a flashover, the Sacramento Fire Department says it's a miracle any of the men made it out alive.
"It's a dangerous job, and sometimes people get hurt," Capt. Doucette said.
The fire was extinguished before spreading to any other structures.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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