SOUTHBRIDGE, MASS. (WHDH) - New video from the Southbridge house fire show the moment neighbors rushed into the house, with smoke pouring out, to help.
They ran toward the danger to help a woman trapped inside before firefighters ultimately pulled her to safety.
“The flames were just explosive from the roof,” neighbor Gina Sivongxay said. “You just seen smoke kind of around this area too.”
Sivongxay said she as working from her home when she heard the sirens, prompting her to look outside.
Approximately 50 firefighters responded to the blaze on South Street, which spread to the attic.
Southbridge Fire Chief Paul Normandin said when crews arrived, they heard a woman yelling for help on the first floor. He said firefighters rushed in and were able to get her out of the home.
“Our goal was life safety, we wanted to get in there and rescue her first,” said Normandin. “She experienced some thermal burns above her body. She was breathing on her own.”
Normandin said the woman was taken to the hospital in critical condition, then airlifted to another hospital for further treatment.
No one else was in the home at the time.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
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