National City police officers rescued a woman from a fire Thursday night after she became trapped in her burning studio apartment.
According to the National City Police Department, officers responded to the fire in the 1900-block of I Avenue just after 10:30 p.m. There, police found smoke billowing from a studio apartment and a 55-year-old resident still trapped inside. Officers forced open the front door and pulled the woman out to safety.
Police then used fire extinguishers to battle the blaze until crews from the National City Fire Department arrived. Firefighters were able to knock down the fire within about half an hour.
The woman remained with officers outside the home and was then transported to a local hospital with some injuries. Officials said the woman suffered minor burns on her hands and smoke inhalation. She’s expected to make a full recovery. No officers or firefighters were injured in the incident.
Fire investigators believe the fire was started by a candle, though the cause remains under investigation.
Firefighters praised quick-thinking by police and said that if officers had not rescued the woman from the burning building as quickly as they did, the outcome would have been tragically different.
