A disastrous combination of fire and wind injured seven Prince George’s County firefighters Friday night, three of them critically.
Firefighters were battling a blaze inside a vacant single-family home in Riverdale around 9:11 p.m. when a sudden gust of wind created what department spokesman Mark Brady called a “fireball,” engulfing the men.
Fellow firefighters evacuated the injured men as quickly as possible and put out the fire about half an hour later.
Bladensburg firefighter Ethan Sorrell, 21, remains in critical condition at Washington Hospital Center with burns to his airway. Kevin O’Toole, 22, also in critical condition, is being treated for second and third degree burns over 40 percent of his body. Riverdale firefighter Michael McLary, 19, injured his ribs and may be released later on Saturday. All three men were volunteers.
Family members from North Carolina and New York traveled to be with the injured men Friday night.
Four other firefighters were treated and released Friday night.
The home, on the 6400 block of 57th Avenue, suffered about $75,000 worth of damage, Brady said in a statement.
