Man rescued after small blaze starts
Published 11:44 am Thursday, June 30, 2011
The occupant of a house is led away from the house as firefighters enter the residence to put out a small kitchen fire Wednesday night at the corner of Fourth Street and Third Avenue NW. -- Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
It drew a crowd Wednesday night, but it didn’t do much damage.
A stove caught fire in the kitchen of an apartment building at the corner of Third Avenue and Fourth Street Northwest across from Pacelli and Austin high schools.
Austin firefighters enter a home at the corner of Fourth Street NW and Third Avenue NW late Thursday night.
The fire started in the upper northwest room when a resident left an item on the stove, according to Fire Chief Mickey Healey. Firefighters had to rescue one person, 41-year-old Jeffrey Riles, from the building, but Healey said he was mostly able to walk out on his own power.
Riles had fallen asleep when the fire broke out, Police Chief Brian Krueger said. Riles became slightly combative after waking up while being carried out of the residence by a firefighter, Krueger said.
Healey said there was little damage to building, other than some minor damage to the stove and some discoloration to paint.
Resident Kefa Kebaso was watching television in his room downstairs when law enforcement told him to evacuate.
“I just heard pounding on the doors,” he said.
More than 20 people out and about stopped to watch emergency crews work the scene.
— Amanda Lillie contributed to this report.
