Two children suffering from smoke inhalation were taken to Memorial University Medical Center after being pulled by firefighters from a burning home in Savannah on Sunday afternoon.
Just after 2 p.m., firefighters arrived at the 200 block of DeRenne Drive, which parallels DeRenne Avenue, to find heavy smoke and flames coming from the rear of a one-story home. Flames initially were on one side of the home, but eventually engulfed the entire rear, said Mark Keller, Savannah Fire & Emergency Services spokesman.
The blaze was intense enough for the battalion chief on scene to call for a second alarm, Keller said, and at one point, firefighters were ordered out of the structure to take a defensive posture until it was safe enough to return inside.
Firefighters pulled two children from the front left bedroom of the home, Keller said. Though they were as far away from the fire as possible, they suffered smoke inhalation and were rushed to Memorial. Keller said a third child was inside the home, but managed to make it out.
The identities, ages or conditions of the children had not been released Sunday afternoon.
Red Cross was called in to assist those displaced, and Savannah Fire investigators were on scene throughout the afternoon trying to determine the cause and starting point of the blaze.
No further information was immediately available.