Fire guts Sonoma Valley home, badly burned man rescued by firefighters

A badly burned man was hospitalized Wednesday after being discovered by Sonoma Valley firefighters searching a Boyes Hot Springs home that had gone up in flames, a Sonoma Valley fire official said.

The man, estimated to be in his late 60s or 70s, had been trying to escape his San Carlos Drive home. “The gentleman was in a doorway, trying to get out of the house,” Sonoma Valley fire Battalion Chief Spencer Andreis said.

The unidentified man was flown to UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento with major injuries.

Firefighters were called at 1:10 a.m. about smoke in the area but no specific fire. An engine crew searched and found the home with flames inside and called for additional help, getting more Sonoma Valley firefighters as well as Schell-Vista and Kenwood firefighters.

Firefighters first inside started a search and quickly found the man and pulled him outside, Andreis said. Paramedics and an ambulance already on site called for a medical helicopter due to the man’s extensive burns.

Fire crews had the fire under control in about in about 30 minutes, Andreis said. Firefighters stopped the blaze from spreading to nearby homes in the residential neighborhood west of Highway 12. The fire was out and mopped up by about 4:30 a.m.

While the shell of the single-story home remained, flames gutted the inside and destroyed the contents. Andreis estimated the damage at more than $250,000.

Fire officials could see that the blaze started inside, but what sparked it remained under investigation Wednesday.