A Pennsylvania family out to dinner to celebrate their son’s birthday Thursday rushed home after receiving a phone call informing them that the house was on fire.
Firefighters responded to the fire just before 6 p.m. in Bridgeville.
John Sroka said he didn’t think about the danger inside his home when he came back from dinner and entered the house.
“I was trying to save my dog,” he said.
At the time, firefighters had put out the fire, but Sroka didn’t know that and was only focused on freeing his pets from their crates.
Firefighters pulled him back, and moments later, both dogs were reunited with the family.
Sroka said he’s thankful the firefighters were able to get the flames under control. He said he called 911 to warn them about oxygen tanks in the home as soon as they got the call at the restaurant.
Sroka said he doesn’t know how the fire started, but his wife had noted a burning smell before they took their son to dinner for his birthday.
“I came home. I hit the bathroom light and the fuses blew. I went down and reset them. My wife smelled wires burning. We checked throughout the house. (We) didn't smell nothing, see nothing. We went to take the kids out to dinner. Before we got in the car, she said, ‘Let’s check again.’ We went in, and we checked again,” Sroka said. “We went to dinner at the Olive Garden and got a phone call that our house was on fire.”
He said he is now left to figure out what to do next but is glad everyone is safe.
“We lost everything. My kids are special needs. No feeding tubes, nothing. It's hard,” Sroka said.
The fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire.
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