Langley house fire leaves 1 dead, 2 in hospital

One person is dead after an early morning fire in Langley.

Fire officials say crews arrived at a two-storey home on 74B Avenue near 208 Street just before 2:30 a.m. and found flames shooting from the building.

Resident James Wilson said he’d left the home about 15 minutes before the fire broke out, but that his girlfriend was still inside.

He said another man who lived in the home warned other residents, but died after going back towards the flames.

“He died a hero, he sacrificed himself to get the other two out.”

Wilson said the man who died had oxygen tanks for his Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder (COPD), which may have exploded near him.

Crews had to break down a door to get into the house, according to officials.

“This was a defensive fire, meaning we fought it from the outside just because of the heavy involvement in there,” said Township of Langley Dept. Fire Chief Monty Armstrong.

“The residents inside alerted themselves about the fire, to get out — I’m not sure if there was working smoke alarms in here or not, but it just shows how important it is to have them in your house.”

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Firefighters say five people were in the home at the time, one of whom did not survive.

Two people were reportedly taken to hospital, and the extent of their injuries was not immediately clear.

The fire seriously damaged the building and destroyed its roof.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.