A teenage girl was flown to a Pittsburgh hospital after a significant fire broke out Wednesday morning in Butler’s South Side neighborhood.
The call from the teenager inside the home came into Butler County 911 Center just before 9:30 a.m. in the 500 block of Center Avenue, which is near St. Michael’s Church. The teenager told dispatch she was trapped in a second-floor room and remained on the phone before losing conciseness according to Captain Tim Iman of the Butler City Fire department.
“From my understanding she’d just called 911,” said Iman. “And reported that her house was on fire and that she was stuck in the upstairs bedroom.”
When crews arrived on scene they found a heavy fire, with smoke billowing from the home’s kitchen. It was soon escalated to a two-alarm blaze. Officials would later say the fire started in the back of the home.
Firefighters were able to get the teen out of the room within 10 minutes but found her unresponsive. After she was taken out of the home she was rushed to Butler Memorial Hospital, then flown to a Pittsburgh trauma center.
Her current condition is not known but officials say the girl was alive when she was flown to the hospital. Two people lived in the home but the mother of the teen was at work and the teen was home alone completing home schooling.
Captain Iman was proud of how fast his crew was able to rescue the teenager and get the fire under control.
“Crews worked quickly and efficiently,” said Iman. “and we had the best possible outcome we could have had out of it.”
A dog and cat were also in the home at the time of the fire. The dog was taken out of the home and was taken in by a neighbor but the cat could not be located.
Fire fighters had the fire under control within half an hour, but smoke continued to come from the home for nearly two hours, and Center Avenue was reopened around 11:30 a.m.
From outside the home significant smoke and fire damage could be seen. Due to the damage to the exterior and interior of the structure, officials considered the home a total loss.
According to Iman, at this time there is no suspicion of criminal activity that led to the start of the fire but the investigation into what caused the fire is ongoing at this time.
The Pennsylvania State Police Fire Marshal has also taken over the investigation.
