A volunteer firefighter with Lowndes County Fire Department is in surgery at a burn center in a Jackson hospital today with severe burns he received responding to a Tuesday fire near Steens.
Firefighters received a call about a burning house on Sycamore Road off Highway 50 at about 3:30 a.m. Tuesday, according to fire department authorities. District 3 firefighters, assisted by District 1, battled the flames nearly six hours, District 3 Chief Wayne Doyle said.
Lowndes Fire Coordinator Neil Austin said the firefighter was in the home when radiant heat overcame his protective gear. He suffered burns primarily to the back and neck.
Authorities have not released the identity of the injured firefighter, but Doyle said he has second- and possibly third-degree burns, though doctors won’t know for sure until after the firefighter is out of surgery.
No other injuries were reported in the fire. The house was a total loss.
Austin said the fire started in a shop behind the house and spread to the home itself. It was possibly caused by a space heater, he said.
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