San Antonio firefighters are trying to find the cause of a fire that destroyed a Northeast Side home, left a man suffering from smoke inhalation and possibly killed three dogs.
The fire broke out after 6 a.m. Wednesday in the 4400 block of Moana Drive.
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Firefighters say three men and five dogs were inside the home at the time. One of the men reported hearing a crackling noise, then smelling smoke.
“He said that when he opened the garage door that flames rolled from the garage through the kitchen,” said Capt. John Flores with the San Antonio Fire Department. “He was able to wake up his co-habitants and they were all able to get out, but they didn’t have time to come back in for the dogs.”
One of the men suffered smoke inhalation and was taken to a hospital for treatment.
Firefighters later found two of the pets alive, but the other three are still missing.
They also faced a challenge from the fire, itself. It appeared that it had been burning for some time and already had caused quite a bit of damage before fire crews arrived.
“All four sides of the house had fire rolling out of the eaves,” Flores said. “That’s usually indicative of it being in the attic already and being fully involved.”
Fire crews had to work quickly to keep it from spreading to the homes on either side.
The neighbors’ homes did not sustain any damage, but the home where the fire started was destroyed.
Flores says he expects that the people who were displaced will get assistance from the American Red Cross.
Investigators are still trying to determine exactly how the fire started, although they do believe it started in the garage, Flores said.