Another night emergency call. We have to move to the fire scene with only one squad since our second team is dealing with another serious fire at the same time. So at first, we had to act with limited resources. On the site, a non-residential one-story log house is burning with an open fire, with a spreading the fire to the attic. Two homeless people (vagrant) were locked inside. Apparently, the cause of the fire was the onset of cold weather so they decided to light the old stove. There was a slight hitch with the opening of the lock on the grate. It turned out that the trapped guy was holding the key to the lock in his hand. So instead of breaking the lock with the bolt cutter, we tried to use his key. After rescuing the first guy, we got conflicting information from him about there being possibly two more people inside the burning house. Or just one. So, while one part of the team was working on controlling the fire, I made an attempt to find the man (people?) trapped inside. Yes, going inside alone is against the rules, but we had limited resources and no time to wait for the arrival of support. Sometimes situations force us to make such decisions. The second guy was discovered quickly. Despite the dense smoke, he was surprisingly still conscious and tried to wet some fabric with water to breathe through. Yes, I know, I did not use a breathing protection device to bring him out despite I had it. Firstly, there
were barely a few meters to the exit. Second, these guys always have many infections (tuberculosis). And, perhaps, in an hour, I might have to go to another fire and use this device to save other people, children. The fire was quickly localized, but here and there, small fire outbreaks appeared on the wood beams under the ceiling, which we caught until morning... The burned house is of historical value. Maybe someday it could be restored. Both victims survived without serious consequences, they are very lucky that our Fire Station is so close. When we returned to the station, we learned that in the other fire, where our second team worked, unfortunately the whole family who were trapped had died. Three people, parents, and a child. Poisoned by fumes. Our guys did everything to save them, but for some reason, Fate or God decided this...