South Windsor fire officials say quick-thinking neighbors saved a man from a house fire Sunday evening.
Police said that neighbors spotted smoke coming from a home on Scantic Meadow Drive around 8:15 p.m.
"It was coming out of the side and it was coming out of the roof, then I started thinking, is it something in the attic? Then it came out the window then out of all the bedroom windows," Kimberly Marino, one of the people who rushed over to help, described.
After calling 911, Marino and her family went into the home and found a man unconscious in a chair, and a small fire in the kitchen.
The neighbors turned off the stove, took the burning pan outside, and tried to assist the unconscious occupant.
When firefighters arrived they checked for any extension of the fire and provided medical care to the victim.
Officials said the man suffered a medical incident unrelated to the fire. He was taken to the hospital for treatment of the non-life threatening condition.
Local
Fire officials praised the brave actions of the neighbors.
“The actions of these three neighbors without a doubt reduced the amount of fire damage and most likely saved the occupant from a more serious, if not life threatening situation,” wrote Fire Chief Kevin Cooney in a release.
"We are grateful it was caught, we followed our gut and did what we had to do," Marino told NBC Connecticut.