Miami Home Goes Up In Flames With Man Inside
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- A neighbor managed to capture the intense moment firefighters arrived at a Miami home fully engulfed in flames.
"It was terrifying for a moment. I thought I was going to lose our house," said neighbor Brian Parkhurst.
Parkhurst lives next door to the burning home on NW. 22nd Ave. and N. River Dr.
According to officials, it all started at around 6 a.m. Wednesday. As firefighters made their way, they could see the flames from a distance.
"Pulling up, they recognize this house. The home occupied was severely cluttered on the inside and out," said City of Miami Fire Lt. Ignatius Carroll Jr.
Fortunately, the homeowner managed to get out before the fire spread.
"Talking to residents, they say he was home at the time and his puppies actually started barking, alerting him to the fire, which helped him get out quickly, " said Carroll.
Fire officials said the roof of the home was already unstable and started to collapse when firefighters were battling the blaze and all the debris and clutter from inside were making the situation worse.
"We had to think outside of the box and use ladders from other roofs, pulling tarps off," said Carroll.
Meanwhile, residents who live nearby were awakened by the fire and ran out of their homes hoping the homeowner made it to safety.
"He is one of the oldest neighbors dealing with a lot of issues with his mom and trying to also clean up. They thought he was turning his life around, losing a lot of the stuff, his memories people consider clutter can be devastating to him," said Carroll.
