A Penndel Borough police officer is being celebrated for his quick actions to save eight residents on Thursday morning as, officials said, crews in Bucks County were met with “hoarding conditions” while attempting to extinguish a house fire.
According to officials, at about 4:55 a.m. on Thursday, several Bensalem-based fire companies were working to support the Penndel Volunteer Fire Company as flames tore through a home located along the unit block of West Woodland Avenue.
As firefighters worked to enter the home, officials said, they were met with “hoarding conditions” that caused them to enter “a defensive mode.”
In a morning update to the incident, officials in Penndel said that crews were alerted to the incident when Officer Sean Peck of the Penndel Borough Police Department observed the flames and entered the home at about 4:40 a.m. on Thursday morning.
Officials said Peck entered the home, “despite the fire and heavy smoke conditions,” and helped eight individuals to exit the property.
In a statement, Chief Sean Perry of the Penndel Borough Police Department commended Peck for his actions, saying “his immediate response prevented what could have been a tragic loss of life.”
Thanks to Peck’s actions, no one in the home was harmed in this incident, Perry said.
On Thursday morning, NBC10’s Lili Zheng spoke to Justin Ritorto, a neighbor who saw the fire on his way to the gym, who said he assisted Peck in the rescue.
In fact, Ritorto said, he was banging on windows of the home in an effort to wake the occupants when Peck showed up.
“It was raging. It like, I think, if I was there 10 minutes later, it would have been bad,” he said.
Also at the scene, Deputy Chief Sam Simon, of the Penndel Volunteer Fire Company said that adults and children were rescued from the home.
“I know there were some pets, they were concerned about some rabbits and such,” he said. “We don’t know if they survived. Most likely not.”
Also, as crews worked to extinguish the fire, Bellevue Avenue, between Hulmeville Avenue and Business Route 1, as well as Business Route 1 at Center Avenue, were closed.
Officials with the Red Cross said that they were working to support nine people who were displaced by the morning fire.
Fire officials have not yet said how this fire may have started but, an investigation is ongoing.
NBC10 is working to learn more.
This is a breaking news story. It will be updated as new information becomes available.
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