PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (WHDH) - Several residents in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, were rescued early Monday morning from a fire that reduced three buildings to a pile of rubble.

RELATED STORY: 3 buildings collapse after massive fire breaks out in Portsmouth

One man who lived on the fourth floor of one of the buildings said he was asleep on his couch when his fire alarm went off. The smoke was so intense that fire crews found him hanging out of his window, gasping for air.

“I’m trying to make a list of things that I lost. I got to start over,” Craig Langton said.

Langton was one of more than a dozen people who were forced from their home. He says a wall of smoke trapped him inside his apartment.

“I opened up my window and called to one of the firefighters. They got a ladder up to me,” Langton said.

Moments after Langton was rescued, a neighboring building that houses a popular restaurant, crumbled to the ground.

The Red Cross is on scene to help residents of the buildings.

 

 

(Copyright (c) 2024 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

Join our Newsletter for the latest news right to your inbox