SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio firefighters struggled with flames, a family’s fears and their own gear at the site of a house fire on the East Side Wednesday morning.
Arson investigators looking for cause of fire that destroyed East Side home
They were called to the 100 block of F Street after 3:30 a.m. and found a small building behind a main home fully involved in fire.
Within seconds, they also found out that fear was part of the equation.
“Family members in the front of the house were insistent that their father, family member, was in that structure,” said Battalion Chief Connie Hall with the San Antonio Fire Department.
She said firefighters immediately got started battling the flames, while keeping in mind that someone could be inside the 10’x12’ foot structure.
At one point during that firefight, they had to call San Antonio police to help calm down the family, Hall said.
In the middle of the commotion, though, they all got a welcome surprise.
“(The man), in fact, showed up to the scene, so it was good. That was no longer an issue,” she said.
Unbeknownst to his family, the man had gone out and was not home when the fire started.
Hall said fire crews also faced some challenges when it came to their gear, thanks to new rules related to the coronavirus.
“The social distancing and firefighting is a little difficult, knowing that when they take their (firefighting) masks off, they need to put the regular masks on,” Hall said.
There were no injuries related to the fire.
An arson team was called in to investigate the cause of the fire. Hall said the home had no working utilities.
