Doctors are treating a San Jose firefighter for second degree burns to his hand after he fell into a burning apartment building early this morning.
He slipped through the ventilation hole he and his colleagues had cut in the roof and landed in the attic of a home on Underwood Drive in San Jose.
A fire captain tells us he was fully surrounded by flames. A woman on the street could see his hands waving for help through the hole.
His colleagues quickly yanked him out and rushed him to the burn center at valley med. The captain said his injuries could've been much worse if it weren't for his protective gear.
The fire department believes this fire started accidentally with a candle in the downstairs unit. The nine adults and eight children who live here escaped but all four units are damaged or destroyed.
One resident is very thankful for a young man who happened to be walking by when the fire started around 3:45 a.m. The passerby started banging on doors and waking people up.
Unfortunately, he knows from experience how important it is to get out fast. He apparently lost a brother in a fire several years ago.
