Anaheim Blazes Injure Elderly Resident, Firefighter
An elderly man and a veteran firefighter were injured in separate blazes early Wednesday in Anaheim, authorities said.
A passerby spotted smoke and flames shooting through the roof of a house in the 900 block of Helena Street about 2 a.m. and called fire officials.
Firefighters forced their way inside the house and found the only occupant, Charles Blanchard, semiconscious.
Blanchard, 84, was rushed to Anaheim Memorial Medical Center, where he was treated for smoke inhalation and first-degree burns to the face, said Anaheim Fire Division Chief Kent Mastain.
It took firefighters 20 minutes to put out the blaze, which caused $100,000 in damage.
Several hours later, a fire captain who assisted Blanchard out of his home was injured when he helped put out a second fire.
Captain Dennis Hamilton, a 24-year veteran, was battling a 7 a.m. blaze that erupted in the attic of a home in the 300 block of Hampshire Avenue when a portion of the ceiling collapsed on him, Mastain said.
He was rushed to UCI Medical Center in Orange, where he was treated for spinal injuries.
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