Firefighter fell through floor while responding to Charleston house fire

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) – A firefighter suffered minor injuries early Tuesday morning after falling through the floor of a downtown Charleston home.

Crews with the Charleston Fire Department and partner agencies responded to a residential structure fire near Wentworth Street and Barre Street at 2:30 a.m.

At the scene, emergency crews saw smoke and flames coming from a three-story, single-family home, and firefighters immediately began work to fight the fire and search for occupants.

Chief Fire Marshal Mike Julazadeh said firefighters were temporarily evacuated from the home because of structural damage. Work continued outside of the home to extinguish the flames and protect surrounding buildings.

“Once the fire was deemed under control, crews were able to return to the building to complete secondary searches and complete the extinguishment of hotspots in the home,” said Julazadeh.

During search operations, one firefighter fell through the third floor, to the second floor, and was quickly removed from the building with help from additional crews.

The firefighter was taken to a local hospital for assessment and later released back to duty with only minor injuries.

Fire officials say the home was not occupied when the incident occurred; investigators are working to determine the origin and cause of the early morning fire.