1 dead following San Francisco house fire

Officials with the San Francisco Fire Department are investigating after one person died in a house fire early Saturday morning. Dave Detling reports

SAN FRANCISCO - One person is dead following a fire in San Francisco's Ingleside neighborhood.

According to the San Francisco Fire Department, the one-alarm fire started just after 7 a.m. on Saturday morning at a two-story home at 222 Byxbee Street. When crews arrived at the scene they found smoke and flames coming from the ground level.

"Upon entering they found someone in a bedroom." Lt. Jonathan Baxter said. "They were able to rescue that individual. Unfortunately, this individual did succumb to their injuries as a result of the fire."

Neighbors who spoke with KTVU said the victim was an elderly man who lived alone and had trouble moving around.

"My husband would help him a couple of times," Rose Zimmerman said. "He fell outside his house a few times. Our neighbors would help him with his garbage cans as well. He lived alone. It's sad that this happened."

The fire also caused a neighbor to evacuate from an adjoining home.

"I smelt the smoke," Dorothy said. "I also have trouble getting around, but the firefighters helped me get outside. They gave me a blanket and sat me in a chair on the sidewalk."

Dorothy said she watched as firefighters and paramedics gave her neighbor first aid.

"I asked if he was okay. They said, ‘no.' I'm just blessed the fire didn't spread," she said.

"It’s a sad event when we lose anybody," Lt. Baxter added. "One person is one too many for this community, for this family, for this person’s friends."

The blaze was contained within 20 minutes of firefighters arriving at the scene.

SFFD is investigating the cause of the fire. The victim's name has not yet been released.