IFD Battles Two House Fires Saturday Night

INDIANAPOLIS — A child is in critical condition after firefighters pulled him from a burning home on the south side of Indianapolis Saturday night. Crews arrived on Finley Avenue, near I-65 and South State Avenue, just after 10 p.m. to find flames pouring from the first floor of a two-story house. While two adults and two other children escaped through a back door, they alerted firefighters that the 2-year-old was still inside on the second floor. The father and a neighbor had tried to reach the child themselves but were forced back by thick smoke. Firefighters got into the home and found the boy within two minutes. He was unconscious when they brought him out and was taken to a hospital. The father told firefighters that working smoke alarms gave them enough time to get most of the household out safely. Firefighters also spent Saturday night battling a fire at a vacant home on the east side of Indianapolis. Crews arrived at the house on North Bolton Avenue, near East Tenth Street and I-70, just before 10:30 p.m. to find heavy smoke and flames coming through the roof. The family who owns the property says the house has been vacant for four years after their father died and had been broken into several times. The fire was under control after 10:45 p.m. Crews found no one inside, and no injuries were reported.