LYNNWOOD, Wash. — A heroic effort by three neighbors saved the life of an elderly woman in a wheelchair who was trapped in her burning home Thursday night.
The woman was carried out of her home in the 13900 block of 20th Place West near Lynnwood. "The house was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived, and the two women -- a mother and her adult daughter -- were already outside," said Leslie Hynes, public information officer for Snohomish County Fire District 1.
“When we saw the smoke, we saw the (homeowner’s) daughter just black from soot and smoke,” said neighbor Fabi Garcia. “We could already feel the heat from the fire coming,” said Garcia, who added that just before the woman was rescued, one neighbor who knew the woman was trapped in the house crashed through a window to get to her.
"When the mother made it through the smoke to the front door, she was ejected from her wheelchair. At that point, three neighbors ended up working together to pull the woman out of the smoke to safety," Hynes said. "Without their help, the woman most likely would have been overcome by smoke and flames in a matter of minutes."
Neighbor Aaron Wadsworth joined two other men who braved the heat and intense smoke to pull the woman to safety.
“I grabbed one arm, another guy grabbed the other arm,” Wadsworth said. “Whoever the third guy was, I’ve never met him, he grabbed her feet and we just drug her basically to the sidewalk."
The mother and her daughter were both exposed to heavy smoke conditions and were taken to Providence Regional Medical Center Everett. Their conditions did not appear to life-threatening.
Two cats died in the fire. The single-story house is a total loss. The Red Cross is assisting the residents.
Firefighters from Everett, Lynnwood and Mukilteo assisted Fire District 1 and had the fire under control in about 30 minutes.
Investigators from the Snohomish County Fire Marshal's Office plan to resume work tomorrow to look for the cause of the fire.
Neighbors who saw it happen are still astounded by the bravery they witnessed.
"The neighbors are heroes, seriously," Garcia said.
Cox Media Group
