RACINE — A devastating house fire in Racine early Tuesday morning left 10 residents without a home.
Luis Espinoza and his family are left with the feeling of shock and loss after the building they lived in caught fire.
"My mom woke me up and said the house was on fire, and she said other people upstairs were trapped. When I went outside, they were screaming," Espinoza said.
When he tried to help the upstairs residents, thick smoke forced him back.
"Once I got up the stairs, you just saw a lot of smoke like everywhere. I tried to go in, but it was just too much I couldn't," Espinoza said.
When firefighters arrived, they found two people on the second-floor overhang trying to escape and two more at a window. The fire department successfully rescued four people from the second floor.
Another person was found unconscious and required transport by Flight for Life. Their condition remains unknown.
Watch: Resident recounts being woken up as his Racine home catches fire, displacing 10
Pictures and video from witnesses show the large fire department response and smoke pouring from second-floor windows.
While Espinoza's family escaped safely, the experience shook him deeply.
"It was like a wake-up call; you never know when you're going to be gone," Espinoza said.
All 10 residents are now displaced and searching for new housing.
"We have to look for a new place and stuff for today at least, right now we're just moving as much as we can now to put in storage and stuff," Espinoza said.
The Red Cross is working with the displaced residents.
This story was reported on-air by Brendyn Jones and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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