A resident of a home that caught fire in northeast Omaha says she is worried about her fiance, who went to the hospital for treatment with two others.
Some residents of the home on Binney Street, near Florence Boulevard, were able to escape the fire when flames broke out around 11 a.m. on Friday.
Smoke alarms woke up and alerted some of the residents before the thick, black smoke took over the house. Firefighters say the blaze began on the first floor.
“I needed to get out right away. I started smelling it right away,” said Melissa Richart.
Hours after the fire, Richart was still frightened by the fire that forced her from her bed.
She says she was in an upstairs room of the home. Firefighters say the flames started on the main level.
“The smoke was downstairs. When I went downstairs, it got really, really, really bad,” she recalled.
“The front, probably the southeast corner, otherwise heavy smoke damage. Fire crews encountered as they got upstairs. Just heavy black smoke they had to work through,” said Battalion Chief Matt Carmichael.
Carmichael says four people lived inside the group home.
One victim was outside when crews pulled up. They found another critical patient upstairs. A third person went to the hospital with burns.
“I was able to get out, and I wanted to try and get my fiance out. I couldn't. The fire departmen got him out,” said Richart.
She, who was forced from her home with nothing, was getting assistance from the American Red Cross Friday afternoon.
“We know she came out of the house, she didn't have shoes, she didn't have necessary clothing. So we're going to give her assistance in replacing those necessary items,” said Liz Dorland, with the American Red Cross.
Fire officials say the victims will be able to stay at the house next door, which is part of the group home.
Richart is still worried about the injured.
“I'm just praying that my fiance is okay,” she said.
Firefighters are still investigating the cause of the fire. The names of those who were injured have not been released.
