A collapse during a fire at a west Austin condominium complex sent three firefighters to the hospital with burns Sunday morning. While fighting the fire, the second floor gave way and burning debris trapped Lt. Jeremy Burke, Firefighter Wille Cook, and Firefighter Jimmy Casares, according to the Austin Fire Department. Burke and Cook are both 16-year veterans of the department. Casares has four years of experience, according to AFD.
Austin Fire Department Division Chief Palmer Buck said Sunday morning that the firefighters suffered second degree burns and are in good condition. However, an update Sunday afternoon stated an ambulance took Casares to a burn center in San Antonio and that an APD officer also went to the hospital for smoke inhalation. The fire started around 7:30 Sunday morning at the Dry Creek West complex at 3839 Dry Creek Drive, near RM 2222 and Mopac. Heavy smoke and fire prompted crews to call for more help, according to Buck. Despite the danger, firefighters decided to go into the building, to try to save a life. Crews later determined the person firefighters were trying to rescue was actually out of town.