A firefighter battling a house fire on East Ithaca Place in Aurora fell through a section of floor that gave way beneath him early Friday, prompting a mayday call before crews pulled him to safety. The blaze, reported shortly after 12:30 a.m. west of South Buckley Road, sent the injured firefighter to a local hospital as a precaution, though his injuries were described as minor.
Floor Gives Way Mid-Fight, Crew Scrambles
According to Denver7, a portion of the floor collapsed while firefighters were working to knock down the fire, causing one of them to fall with it. Aurora Fire Rescue declared a mayday the moment the floor gave out, a signal reserved for when a firefighter is in immediate danger and needs help fast. The firefighter was quickly rescued, the outlet reported, and was taken to a local hospital as a precaution.
With one of their own down, the rest of the crew pulled back. All other firefighters were evacuated from the home and continued fighting the fire from the outside while the mayday situation was resolved, per the same account. Once it was safe to go back in, they reentered the structure, conducted several searches of the home, and found no one inside.
Cause Still Unknown
Investigators have not yet determined what sparked the fire on East Ithaca Place, and the cause remains under investigation, according to the report. No details have been released about the extent of the firefighter's injuries beyond being described as minor, nor about who owns or occupies the home.
Floor collapses like this one aren't unheard of in structure fires, where heat and flame can weaken flooring from below before crews realize the danger. In a separate incident in Denver, a firefighter similarly fell through a hole in a floor during a house fire and was quickly rescued by fellow crew members, according to CBS News Colorado. That firefighter suffered minor burn injuries to his arm, and officials said the fire had started in a crawl space beneath the home before burning through the first floor.
For now, the Aurora case remains open as fire officials work to pin down what caused the blaze on East Ithaca Place. No further details on the firefighter's condition or the home's damage have been released.
