Boardman firefighter injured in blaze

Staff report

BOARDMAN

A township firefighter was injured early Wednesday after he fell through the second floor of a house on Sugar Creek Drive.

Fire Chief George Brown said the firefighter, who has been with the department for 25 years, later was released after treatment from St. Elizabeth Health Center’s Boardman facility.

He was ordered to follow up with an orthopedic doctor and will be off work for some time, Brown added.

A neighbor of the home in the 7500 block of Sugar Creek Drive spotted flames coming from the house and notified the department. Township firefighters, assisted by the Western Reserve Joint Fire District from Poland, got the call at 3:44 a.m.

As the township firefighter entered the second floor with other firefighters, he noticed nothing was there and he had nothing to grab to keep him from falling.

“His partner put in a Mayday,” Brown said.

The firefighter was treated at the scene and taken to the hospital by Lane LifeTrans ambulance company.

Brown said the fire, which caused an estimated $120,000 damage, is under investigation.

It is believed the blaze started between the first-floor ceiling and second floor. The fire took about 30 to 40 minutes to extinguish. No one was in the home at the time.