Cedar Rapids firefighters rescue man from smoke-filled home

CEDAR RAPIDS - Cedar Rapids firefighters came to the rescue of an 80-year-old man trapped in a smoke-filled house Thursday after a kitchen fire was 'unintentionally started” by a child.

The Cedar Rapids Fire Department responded to a call in the 2400 block of First Avenue SE at about 6:30 p.m., according to a news release. Firefighters entered the one-story house and rescued Jerry Banes from a bedroom. The crew knocked down a small fire in the kitchen, the news release states.

Firefighters also assisted a 41-year-old man, identified as a neighbor, who they found outside the home. He was assessed for smoke inhalation suffered after he attempted to rescue Banes, according to the release.

Banes was transported to UnityPoint-St. Luke's Hospital with non-life threatening injuries, officials said.

Investigators concluded that the fire was unintentionally started by a 3-year-old who had put blankets on top of the stove while a range top was turned on.

'This incident illustrates how quickly a young child can inadvertently set a fire,” the fire department noted in a prepared statement. 'We are glad that the child or no one else in the home was seriously injured.”

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