Investigators say a house fire late last night in Cedar Rapids sent two people to the hospital. One man suffered serious injuries in the blaze, which was reported around 10:15 p.m. on the city’s southeast side at 3230 Dalewood Avenue SE.
A female also needed medical treatment. Cedar Rapids Fire Department spokesperson Greg Buelow says two smoke alarms were sounding when firefighters arrived at the home. “Poisonous gases and smoke can render you, more or less, disorientated,” Buelow said. “You don’t know where you’re at, you become easily confused and so it’s very difficult to escape once you take in a certain amount of smoke.”
The two victims were first treated at Mercy Medical Center in Cedar Rapids, but later transferred to University Hospitals in Iowa City. Their names and conditions have not been released. Investigators say the fire started near an oxygen generator which was located in the man’s second floor bedroom.
By Jeff Raasch, KCRG-TV, Cedar Rapids