Town of Van Buren, New York – The Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office reports that Sheriff’s Deputies along with State Troopers rescue a man trapped in a house fire this morning in the Town of Van Buren.
This morning at approximately 4:26 AM, Sheriff’s Deputies and State Troopers were dispatched to a reported residential fire at 127 Cedarwood Boulevard. Sheriff’s Deputy Laura Collins arrived on scene within minutes and discovered heavy smoke and flames coming from the rear of the home. Not knowing if the residence was occupied, she began pounding on the doors and windows while yelling in an attempt to alert anyone inside.
A woman eventually came to the front door and was escorted safely out of the burning home. The woman informed Deputy Collins that her 23-year-old son was still inside the home. Deputy Collins entered the home in an attempt to search for the male but was forced to evacuate due to the heavy smoke. After yelling multiple times, the male came to a second story bedroom window and informed Deputy Collins that he was trapped in the room.
With the assistance from arriving Trooper’s, John Moretti and David Henrie, along with Deputy William Adamo, they worked together to stack a neighbors garbage bins directly underneath the males window where they were able to escort the male out the window and safely away from the home.
Firefighters from the Lakeside and Baldwinsville Fire Department arrived on scene and were able to get the fire under control within 20 minutes, which caused significant damage to the residence. Deputy Collins, along with the two occupants of the home, sustained minor smoke inhalation and were medically treated at the scene. Onondaga County Fire Investigators were called to the scene and determined that the fire started by the careless disposal of a cigarette on the rear porch. Investigators also found that the home had no working smoke detectors. The American Red Cross is currently working with the homeowner on relocating them.
