VIDEO: Citizen Rescue of Man from Burning Home on E Dakota Near Cedar Ave, Fresno


The Fresno Bee: A dramatic rescue of a man from a burning east-central duplex home was captured Saturday on video, at 1:32 minutes. Video provided by Beth Lederach of Clovis.

Fresno firefighters responded about 8:14 a.m. Saturday, October 18, 2014 to the 4300 block of East Dakota Avenue to a report of a fire in a duplex home.

Before firefighters arrived a woman holding a baby cried, “My dad is in there! My dad is in there!” An unknown man walked right into the burning home and rescued the woman’s dad.

Beth Lederach of Clovis, happened to be driving by and stopped when she saw smoke smoke coming from a house and called 911. She then captured a five-minute video of a citizen rescue of a man in the house as the house became fully-involved with fire. Just before the citizen rescue, a loud power line arc is heard and small explosions are also heard inside the house. Lederach provided her witnessed report of the house fire. She said an unknown rescuer appeared to have “come out of nowhere,” Lederach said. “He just calmly walked right in there and then came walking right back out with this guy.”

The first due engine was delayed because it was on a medical assist call. There were also reports that people on the scene initially tried to extinguish the fire on their own before calling 9-1-1.

Fresno Fire Department spokesman Kris Townsend provided this reminder:

Get everyone out of the house and call 9-1-1 as soon as possible.

See also …
The Fresno Bee Man carried to safety as east-central Fresno home goes up in flames (video)



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