PARKLAND, Fla. – A Parkland family escaped an overnight fire, but a firefighter was hurt putting out the flames.
The fire started just north of Coral Springs near Northwest 72nd Street and 87th Avenue.
Family members woke up and called 911 after smelling smoke about 3 a.m. When firefighters arrived, they found flames shooting through the roof.
Neighbor Eliot Lazowick told Local 10 News that the homeowner told him the fire started in the garage.
"You don't expect to come outside and see your neighbor's house burning to the ground," Lazowick said. "Yeah, the flames were really high -- 30 to 40 feet. The house was fully engulfed."
Officials told Local 10 they encountered a problem fighting the fire when they discovered the nearest fire hydrant was almost 2,000 feet away from the house.
Firefighters said their trucks ran out of water.
"We tried to use drafting measures to get water from the canals, which were not sufficient, so we had to use other means of getting water to the fire, which kind of delayed operation a little bit," Coral Springs Fire Deptartment Capt. Richard Antonini said.
Firefighters said they couldn't pull water from the canals because the canals were too shallow, so their only choice was the fire hydrant that was far away from the home.
Neighbors said the lack of fire hydrants is common in rural areas. The family is now staying in another building on the property.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
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