Neighbors wake Oak Park family as fire tears through home

OAK PARK, Mich. (FOX 2) - Albert Wilson had woken up and gotten on his phone when he noticed an orange glow reflecting in its screen. When he turned his head around, he saw a home's carport was on fire.

Together, he and his brother jumped into action and sprinted across the street. First they banged on the door and windows, but didn't hear any response. Finally, after breaking the windows, the people inside woke up. 

The fire, which was reported at a home in the 2200 block of Sloman in Oak Park, quickly spread to the rest of the house. Three occupants managed to escape the fire.

"They were terrorized. They were scared," said Wilson.

The fire happened around 1:20 a.m. Wednesday.

"They were asleep. They probably would have died in their sleep," he said. In recalling how he felt in the moment he saw the fire, he knew things would get even worse without quick action. "If they don't come out, I gotta go in. It's as simple as that. I would want someone to do that for my family if it happened to them, if they had an opportunity to get out."

Typically, the family staying at the home have other relatives staying with them, which could have added more hazards to the morning emergency. 

Wilson said his brother suffered some cuts and bruises as they worked to rescue the people staying at the home - but no serious injuries were reported.

It took the fire department only a couple minutes to arrive after 911 was dialed. 

It's unclear what started the fire. There were also reports of other explosions, which officers believe could have been other flammable items inside the home.

The structure is a complete loss.