Woman suffers burns in early morning townhouse fire in Applewood Park

Southeast fire sends woman to hospital Watch: A woman was rushed to hospital after fire broke out at a home on Applewood Lane just after 4 a.m. Thursday.

Calgary — One woman was transported to hospital following an early morning fire Thursday in a southeast townhouse.

Fire crews were called to Applewood Lane S.E., in the community of Applewood Park, at around 4 a.m. after a CPS member spotted a possible fire.

Firefighters encountered smoke emanating from a suite and five neighbouring units were temporarily evacuated.

"Calgary police first noticed a woman in the front door of the main structure of the suite suffering from burns and smoke inhalation and she was quickly evacuated from the building," said CFD Central District Chief Innes Fraser. "Time of day is always a big factor for us when a call like this comes in so early in the morning because you expect people to be in the residence and potentially asleep, so this is something we plan for."

Calgary fire said to the woman is believed to be in stable condition. EMS were unavailable for comment. No one else was inside the home at the time of the fire.

In the wake of the damage, bystanders were shocked to see what had happened.

John Sorro, a friend of the victim, walked a couple of kilometres to the scene of the fire after he heard the news.

"It’s really shocking, I just got called this morning and I just woke up and rushed to see if everyone is safe," Sorro said.

Crews were able to battle the flames using an aggressive interior attack and contain the fire to just one home.

In total, 20 firefighters responded including two rescue trucks, an air light truck and a rescue aerial ladder used to extinguish hot spots from above.

The fire has been fully extinguished. The cause and origin of the blaze has not been confirmed as fire investigators remain on scene.

It’s not known if the home had working smoke alarms, but the Calgary Fire Department would like to remind all Calgarians to make sure they are installed in your home and regularly check them.

"It’s so important — they save lives," Fraser said.