Man, 80, loses everything in fire but escapes his home of 30 years

By Las Vegas Sun Staff (contact)

Saturday, Feb. 12, 2011 | 9:46 a.m.

An 80-year-old man who lived alone in an uninsured mobile home with no smoke alarms lost everything in a fire this morning, but firefighters said he's lucky to be alive.

Las Vegas Fire and Rescue responded about 5 a.m. to the fire at a single-wide mobile home at 4309 Zinnia Lane, near Craig Road and Rainbow Boulevard. Fire department spokesman Tim Szymanski said the man suffered injuries that weren't life-threatening.

Firefighters said the man told them he was asleep, but woke because he was choking and it felt like his lungs were on fire. He noticed his home was full of smoke and saw a recliner in the living room on fire, then he tried to push it out a sliding glass door.

He was burned in the process, so he went to his car and starting sounding its horn. Neighbors heard the noise and ran outside to help the man and spray water on the fire, but it was too intense, Szymanski said.

Firefighters arrived to find the home fully engulfed in flames and extinguished the fire in about 10 minutes. The man, who served as a Marine, was taken to a hospital for smoke inhalation and burns to his hands, firefighters said.

Investigators ruled the fire accidental in nature and said it started in or near the chair that the man described. Firefighters found an extension cord in the area that the man said he used to power an electric space heater, Szymanski said. The man told investigators he didn't smoke or use candles.

Authorities said the man's home -- where he has lived for 30 years -- is paid for, but he has no insurance. Szymanski said the man has no family in Las Vegas.

The man used to work as a groundskeeper for a Las Vegas country club, Szymanski said. He is receiving help from the American Red Cross and got $200 from the Las Vegas Fire & Rescue Foundation.

"The man knows he is extremely lucky to be alive for the fact he did not have smoke alarms in his home," Szymanski said in a statement. "He could have easily been overcome by the smoke and have died in the quick-burning fire."

He cautioned residents against using extension cords with space heaters, saying they should be plugged directly into the outlet.