Heroic actions of bystander and firefighters save two people in Iowa house fire

WEST DES MOINES, Iowa- Heroic actions from a bystander and firefighters saved two people from a house fire in West Des Moines Sunday morning.

Firefighters are still investigating the cause of the fire on the corner of 1st Street and Maple Street near the Historic Valley Junction.

According to West Des Moines Fire Marshal Mike Whitsell, someone inside the home called the station just after 8 a.m. Sunday morning reporting that two people were trapped inside.

An ambulance and fire truck arrived on the scene minutes after the call. They observed heavy smoke coming from the back of the house.

Firefighters ran into the one-story home without a hose to rescue the two occupants. Inside, they found a woman standing near the doorway who was able to exit the home after they arrived. They also found a man who was confined to a wheelchair. Firefighters helped him move from his bed to his wheelchair and out of the house.

Both of the occupants went to the hospital for precautionary measures because the house was filled with smoke.

Firefighters also rescued a plethora of pets from the home including a dog and two lizards. Four cats ran out of the home during the fire but two of the four were found as of 9:30am Sunday morning.

After saving the occupants, firefighters worked to put out the fire.

Whitsell said that the fire was put out quickly because a bystander helped knock out some of the flames before officials arrived on scene.

Their investigation found that someone ran into the Sinclair gas station which was adjacent to the house and grabbed a fire extinguisher before running into the burning home. When firefighters arrived, the bystander took the extinguishers back to the gas station and left.

Whitsell said that the West Des Moines Fire Department is looking for the bystander to thank him and to get more information on the fire.

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