The fire broke out deep in the night in one of the apartments in the Latgale suburb of Riga. Fifteen people evacuated from the two-story wooden house, left with no choice but to watch the rescuers work for several hours, hoping for the best. Firefighters managed to localize the fire in time to prevent further damage, reports the Degpunktā program (TV3).
Windows were opened in the first-floor apartment of the wooden house to ventilate the room from the unpleasant smell after the fire. The glass became frosted, indicating heavy smoke during the blaze. Friends of the affected apartment owner came over, having already assessed what had happened.
A friend of the victim:
"[Degpunktā: Was it seriously burned?] Quite, quite severely. [Were you nearby when it happened?] No, I just arrived. [To see how my friend is doing?] Yes, well, he was lucky. It didn’t reach the second floor."
It is evident from the facade that this is not the first fire in this house. This time, the flames erupted around half past four in the morning, but the residents quickly woke up and managed to leave the building before the rescuers arrived.
"On the first floor of the two-story building, a wall was burning over an area of two square meters. Before the arrival of the State Fire and Rescue Service, 15 people evacuated from the building," said Agris Asups, commander of the 1st division of the Riga Regional Fire and Rescue Service.
Although the area of the fire was small, firefighters spent more than three hours on site, as the structure around the fire's origin was complex. It took time to ensure that everything was safe.
One of the residents of a neighboring apartment believes that the fire occurred due to the neighbor's desire to warm up properly. "The person overcooked the stove. And the house is already old, wooden," the woman said.
Although no one was physically harmed, the owner of the burned apartment now faces repairs, as both the brickwork and finishing materials were damaged.
Rescuers remind that users of wood heating should regularly clean their chimneys to avoid endangering themselves and others.
