Officials: 7 People Injured, 2 Critical After Flames Sweep Through New Castle County Home
BEAR, Del. (CBS) -- Seven people were rushed to the hospital after flames swept through a home in New Castle County. Firefighters were called to a home just before midnight Saturday on Barrister Court in Bear.
The fire engulfed the entire home at one point, before firefighters were able to get the flames under control.
The state fire marshal says six of the seven people injured in the fire live in the home on Barrister Court.
Neighbor Richard Bomboy says he felt the flames on his face.
"When I came out, the second floor was totally involved," he said. "But as I stood over there watching it, to see the house go like it did, it's frightening to see the house go that fast."
The seventh person -- Michael Rabb -- was treated for minor injuries and smoke inhalation. Rabb rushed into the home to save a woman from inside.
"Someone was saying that, 'Oh, everyone was out of the house.' But the husband said, "No, no, no, my wife is still in there.' That's when my dad ran into the house," Rudy Rabb said.
"They had a lot of heavy fire when they got to the scene," Assistant Fire Marshal Michael Chionchio said. "The Christiana Fire Company went in and immediately extinguished the fire, luckily no firefighters were injured. The injuries come from the occupants of the home. I'm hoping everyone recovers."
A male and female member of the family suffered life-threatening injuries, according to authorities.
The cause of the fire is not known, but fire officials do not believe arson is a factor.
CBS3 spoke to a former neighbor of the family who rushed to the house when she heard it had caught fire.
"I was worried and my son, I was trying to shield him but of course, I had the phone on speaker so he was hearing the conversation. I couldn't get the phone off fast enough and he got upset, so I knew he wasn't going to sleep," Myla Jackson said. "So we drove down because he wanted to know that his friend was OK."
The cause of this fire remains under investigation.
CBS3's Dan Koob contributed to this report.
