5 hospitalized after blaze at Seminole County house

A Friday morning blaze at a Seminole County home without functional smoke alarms ended with five people — including first responders — being taken to local hospitals, officials said.

About 2:35 a.m., Seminole County Fire Department personnel arrived at the house on the 100 block of Meadowlark Drive, said Seminole County spokeswoman Paula J. Thompson.

Two victims — a male and a female — escaped the blaze before the fire department’s arrival, according to a Seminole County press release. However, a third resident, another male, remained in the house, officials said.

Altamonte Springs Police Officer Austin Harris, who arrived before the fire department, broke a window to assist, said department spokesman Lt. Robert Pelton. By doing so, Harris “was able to vent some of the smoke,” he said.

After they rescued the male victim, fire personnel began life saving measures, Thompson said.

The three residents, including the man trapped in the home, were taken to Florida Hospital Altamonte. Harris was transported to the same facility to be “treated for several deep lacerations to his arm” suffered when he broke the window, Pelton said.

An unnamed Longwood Fire Department responder was taken to South Seminole Hospital for unknown injuries.

Authorities said the home’s kitchen took the brunt of the blaze, though the rest of the house experienced smoke damage.

The building lacked operational smoke detectors, Thompson said.

Another Seminole County residential blaze July 2 also involved non-operational smoke detectors, officials said. In that case, an 87-year-old widow and her dog died after the home caught fire; the fire alarms had no batteries.

Thompson encouraged the public to inspect these devices every month to ensure they work. Homeowners should exchange their alarms after 10 years, according to the Seminole County Fire Department.

Officials — led by the State Fire Marshal’s Office — are investigating Friday’s house fire to determine the cause.