BRADFORD COUNTY, Fla. – Two Bradford County firefighters were hurt when they were knocked off their feet by an explosion while they were battling a house fire on SW 92nd Street in Hampton on Monday night.
The house fire started with an earlier explosion, and firefighters confirmed Tuesday morning that one person was found dead in the home.
They could not confirm if the person found is the same person who had remained unaccounted for on Tuesday morning.
Authorities have received reports that oxygen was present inside the home.
Firefighters had to put out hot spots on Tuesday after the fire reignited in places.
One person was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Bradford County Fire Chief Ben Carter said, but it’s unclear if the homeowner was home at the time.
The homeowner’s granddaughter, Mackenzie Demille, said she’s afraid her grandmother was the one killed in the fire.
“I’m scared that she’s in there and nobody’s found her,” Demille said. “I’m scared to live in a world without my grandmother.”
She said she’s lived there since she was a toddler.
“Last night we got a call and they were like, ‘we don’t know what’s going on but the house is up in flames,” she said.
One firefighter who was injured in the secondary explosion was treated at the scene, and the other was taken to a hospital. Neither had injuries that were life-threatening.
There’s significant debris in the home, so crews are going back out to dismantle the home, Carter said.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.