VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Three people are displaced after a large fire destroyed their home early Wednesday morning.
Virginia Beach Fire Department crews were dispatched to a three-story residential fire on Sand Bend Road around 1 a.m.
More than 45 firefighters were called to the scene. When crews arrived, they found the home engulfed in flames and smoke.
A fire department spokeswoman said three people were at the home when it caught fire. One person was able to get out on their own. The other two had to be rescued from a balcony.
The spokeswoman said the two people who were rescued were transported to a local hospital with minor injuries. But no one else was hurt.
For some residents, it’s hard to miss the home left with a charred frame on Sand Bend Road in Virginia Beach.
“I heard my daughter screaming,” said Ben Lane who lives across the street from the house fire. Lane said his daughter woke him up after seeing flames coming from their neighbor’s home.
“When I walked out my door, there was 15-, 20-foot flames," he said. "The worst fire I had ever seen.”
"We saw a blaze that I’ve never seen in my life in person," said James Daniel, who traveled from Hampton to visit family for Independence Day. “It looked like something from the movies.”
Fire department officials marked the fire under control after 2:15 a.m. and declared the fire was out just before 5:30 a.m. Though hours later around 8:30 a.m., they returned dousing more water on the home.
Now, it leaves many neighbors wondering what caused the fire.
“But you always wonder, was it fireworks?" Lane said. "It could have been anything.”
Lane said this is a tight-knit community and neighbors on Sand Bend will support the victims who were displaced.
“We’ll talk to her today," he said. "She’s staying at another friend’s house ... We’ll take care of her, whatever, howwever, we got to take care of her.”
The origin and cause of the fire is still under investigation.
According to Virginia Beach's online property search, the property value for the home was about $1.5 million.
