A 60-year-old man was hospitalized with serious burn injuries after his house caught fire southwest of Tucson, officials said.
The man woke up to his house engulfed in flames, said Tracy Koslowski, Drexel Heights Fire spokeswoman. The man rescued his animals and tried to fight the fire with a fire extinguisher.
Pima County Sheriffβs deputies were on scene first and used a garden hose to spray the man. Drexel Heights Fire District paramedics then transported him to Banner UMC, where he was waiting for a burn specialist to see him, Koslowski said.
The double-wide manufactured home in the 6000 block of South Speaks Trail in Drexel Heights was still burning almost two hours after firefighters responded to the fire. The heat and wind were hindering firefightersβ ability to put out the fire, Koslowski said. She said the house was so involved it was not safe for firefighters to go inside to try to extinguish the fire.
The Drexel Heights Fire marshall was on scene waiting for the fire to be extinguished so he can investigate the cause of the fire, Kolowski said.
The man and his wife will be displaced due to the fire, Koslowski said. The wife was informed of the fire, but went straight to the hospital when she learned about her husbandβs condition.
