A resident of the Spires apartment complex on Ontario Street was rushed to Lockport Memorial Hospital after Lockport firefighters responding to an apartment fire found him suffering second- and third-degree burns to his upper body and head.
Lockport fire officials said they responded to a fire alarm in an apartment at 45 Ontario St. about 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and were directed to a third-floor apartment by a 911 caller.
Arriviing firefighters encountered light smoke in the third-floor hallway and entered the apartment which was filled wth smoke but there were no immediate signs of fire. A closed bedroom door was warm to the touch. Inside a bed and a nightstand were on fire and quickly extinguished.
While putting out the fire, firefighters discovered a semi-concious man face down in the corner of the room. Firefighters carried him down three flights of stairs to an awaiting ambulance. He was rushed to LMH with second- and third-degree burns to a large area of his upper body, head and face.
Due to the weather, Mercy Flight was unavailable and the man was taken to LMH to stabilize his airway before being transfered to Erie County Medical Center.
No other signs of fire were found in the building and after the smoke was ventilated from the building, residents were allowed to return to their apartments.
The estimated damage to the building and its contents was $10,000. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.