Three Aurora firefighters were knocked off their feet by the backdraft of an attic fire Thursday evening, but all were able to escape the home and avoid serious injury, a spokesman said.
The firefighters, who were not identified, were taken to a hospital as a precaution and were treated and released.
A resident who was home at the time was not injured.
Fire crews had been on the scene at 1415 S. Biscay Way for a few minutes when the blast of hot air occurred at about 7 p.m.
The crew was searching for the source of the fire in the attic. The fire had moved from a fireplace into a flue and the attic, said Fire Capt. Allen Robnett.
A backdraft is a current of hot air that moves backward down a chimney or pipe.
“The force knocked them down, but they were able to pull themselves together and get out on their own power,” Robnett said at about 8:30 p.m. “We had them checked out as a precaution, and they’ve since been released.”
The cause of the fire was a failure inside the fireplace, but Robnett did not know if the fireplace was wood-burning or gas.
Two residents of the home, who were not named, were assisted with housing Thursday night by the American Red Cross.
The 30-year-old, single-story home is on a cul-de-sac south of Buckley Air Force Base and east of South Tower Road.
Public records show the current owner is Oscar P. Hernandez. The home was last sold for $175,000 in January 2006.
Joey Bunch: 303-954-1174 or jbunch@denverpost.com
