Police and a local business owner helped rescue a man from a burning home in Santa Barbara Wednesday morning.
The fire broke out at around 9:50 a.m. in the area of 700 Spring Street.
Police say when the fire first broke out Santa Barbara Police Officer, Officer A. Gutierrez, was patrolling on Milpas Street and observed a large plume of black smoke about a block away.
Officer Gutierrez was the first on scene and radioed dispatch that the home was fully engulfed in flames, and he could hear loud screaming coming from inside the home. A local business owner also arrived on scene to assist Officer Gutierrez.
Two more officers quickly arrived and all three of them could see the man trapped in the house through a window. Officer Gutierrez said he used his baton to break the window where furniture could be seen inside obstructing the man's escape. Officer Gutierrez another officer, as well as the local business owner, pulled the man out of the window and carried him to safety.
Santa Barbara City Fire arrived on scene not long after the rescue to put out the flames.
Due to the severity of the fire, police say they started evacuations on neighboring residences in the 700 block of Spring Street and several buildings located on North Milpas Street.
Police say the man in the house was transported to the hospital and treated for minor injuries, and smoke inhalation. Fire officials say all other occupants made it safely out of the home. The three assisting officers sustained minor cuts and smoke inhalation. One one of them had to seek medical care.
Santa Barbara City firefighters were able to extinguish the flames within minutes and minimize further risk to the neighborhood. Investigators say the cause of the fire was determined to be electrical in nature.
