SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio firefighters battling two separate house fires Monday morning found that the flames and smoke were not their biggest challenges.
They say they had to find a way around excessive clutter at one home, and burglar bars at another.
RELATED: Early-morning fire destroys 1 home, threatens another on city’s Southeast Side, SAFD says
The first fire broke out around 4:30 a.m. at an unoccupied home on the city’s Southeast side home, in the 2500 block of Schley Avenue.
According to Battalion Chief John Castillo with SAFD, the fire started in the front room of the home but quickly spread.
“It jumped over to the neighbor’s yard, caught the carport on fire,” he said.
The fire also destroyed an SUV parked under that carport and burned the siding on the neighbor’s home, he said.
The people who live in that home, and neighbors on the other side of the burning home, all left their homes temporarily. Once the fire was put out, they were allowed to return home.
Firefighters say they did not find anyone at the home where the fire started.
However, neighbors told them someone lives in the home, which was crowded with various items.
“It was very difficult for us to gain access because of all the content inside,” Castillo said. “There’s a lot of tripping hazards involved. We had dryers in the front room. We had washing machines in the front room. There’s bicycle parts in the front room.”
A few hours later and miles across town, fire crews found themselves facing similar hurdles when they were called to a fire in the 5300 block of Indian Pipe.
RELATED: Firefighters cut through burglar bars to reach man injured in fire, SAFD says
“They had the one room and contents, just full of stuff. Just packed in there and it was all burning,” said Battalion Chief Russell Johnson.
He said they quickly found out when they arrived around 8:30 a.m. was that they also had a man inside the house who was trapped and screaming.
“They finally got him out through a back door. They had burglar bars on it, and they got them cut off and got him out,” Johnson said.
The man, who is in his 40s or 50s, was rushed to a hospital for treatment of burns and smoke inhalation. Johnson was not able to offer an update on his condition at the time.
Fire investigators are still trying to determine how both fires started.