BEAUMONT, Texas — Beaumont firefighters took extra precaution when battling a blaze that heavily damaged a home Friday morning.
Beaumont firefighters were sent to the fire at a home in the 2600 block of Central Dr., near Central and Delaware, at about 10 a.m.
A man was home at the time of the fire and was able to escape the fire and call 911.
When firefighters arrived at the fire, which is believed to have started on the back porch, heavy smoke was coming from the home.
Firefighters were able to rescue the man's dogs from the home but a pet snake is believed to have perished in the fire.
"The house wasn't full blazing when they went in for the pets, they had the fire under control when they brought the pets out, so it makes a difference. If it's full blazing and there's no chance of survivability then we wouldn't enter," said Beaumont Fire Rescue Investigator Otis Brooks.
Neighbors tell 12News they are grateful for the firefighters' swift response.
“The response was very quick, like one or two minutes they were here already. Like three trucks you can see. They we’re here already that’s very amazing and I’m thankful to the fire department you know and the city for taking care of us," said German Miranda.
It took firefighters about 15 minutes to extinguish the fire.
12News crew on scene witnessed the firefighters dripping sweat, changing soaked gear and wiping their heads to keep cool while doing their job.
They had to put on 75 pounds worth of protective gear to enter the home and battle the blaze.
"It gets up to about 11-hundred degrees in the house at any given time and what our suit does is protect us from that heat. It gets a little warm inside of the suit, but that's what we work out and we stay conditioned to separate us from that 11- hundred degrees," Brooks said.
To prevent any heat-related illnesses, firefighters say they try to eat healthy and drink a lot of water, but it takes more than just that to make sure these first responders are safe.
"The incident commander rotated the crews in so they would only be exposed to heat for a limited amount of time. So, they had a cooling station over here, we had water, a fan and things such as that," Brooks said.
On extremely hot days with large roaring fires, a cooling trailer can also respond to help keep them cool.
"We got various kinds, for various levels of fire. So, the bigger the fire, the more things that we'll pull out," Brooks said.
Hot weather can lead to firefighters experiencing heat cramps, heat exhaustion or heat stroke, according to many professional firefighting organizations.
So, preventive measures are extremely important.
Firefighters deal with heat while fighting summer house fire
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This is a developing story. We will update with more if and when we receive more confirmed information.
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