A 66-year-old male has sustained life-threatening injuries after a house fire broke out in Scarborough Saturday night.
Toronto fire crews responded to the address near Finch Avenue East and Birchmount Road after a passerby called it in a little after 7 p.m.
Once crews got to the home, Toronto fire said the first and second floors were fully engulfed, prompting them to increase the response to two-alarm.
Firefighters have since knocked out the blaze and cut holes into the roof of the home for ventilation.
Officials said they found the man in life-threatening condition on the second floor when searching the home.
Paramedics have taken the victim to a Toronto hospital.
A husband and wife, who lives in the area and dialed 911 after the fire broke out, described the moment they saw heavy smoke coming from the home.
“I was outside pulling corn and I looked out and saw smoke, like black smoke,” Judith Lim explained.
“There were five guys trying to break into the house, they ran and were trying to break in the house but they couldn’t get through the smoke was too big, the fire too intense.”
Richard Bowden, Lim’s husband, said he was shocked by how quickly the fire spread, describing it as “incredibly fast.”
Lim said she witnessed of the men who broke into the house being taken away by paramedics.
“I saw him hauled out into the ambulance,” she said. “I really hope that he made it.”
Fire investigators have been called to attend the scene and the investigation remains ongoing.
–With files from Morganne Campbell & Oriena Vuong
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