Two people were sent to the hospital after a fire burned through a Lakewood home early Wednesday as its inhabitants slept after an unattended blaze in an incinerator ignited the structure.
Neighbors reported the fire about 1:30 a.m. on the 12000 block of West Exposition Drive. When crews from West Metro Fire Rescue arrived, they found heavy smoke and flames coming from the house.
Two people were inside the home when the blaze began and the first was able to escape and summon neighbors to call 911. The second person was trapped and had to be rescued by firefighters, officials said.
“Both people, who were asleep at the time of the fire, were transported to a local hospital,” according to a news release from West Metro.
St. Anthony’s Hospital in Lakewood they released one of the victims while the other remains in critical condition.
Investigators say the family had been burning leaves and other materials earlier in the day which rekindled during the night and sparked the fire.
“The home suffered extensive fire and smoke damage and will be uninhabitable,” the release said.
The home lacked smoke alarms, officials said.
Jesse Paul: 303-954-1733, jpaul@denverpost.com or twitter.com/JesseAPaul
