Fort Worth firefighters rescue people from burning church building

FORT WORTH, Texas - Several people were rescued from a burning church building early Wednesday in Fort Worth.

The fire started about 3 a.m. in a vacant building at the South Fort Worth Baptist Church in the 800 block of W Fogg St.

Firefighters said six homeless people were in the building to get out of the cold and had built a fire to stay warm. But that fire became uncontained and spread, trapping five of the people inside. A sixth person managed to escape and told firefighters where the others were stuck.

Firefighters used a ladder to get inside and rescue the people.

"The heroic efforts of our firefighters this morning, saving those peoples' lives, is something for them to be commended. They were able to quickly get those ladders raised through the training that they've got and get them out of the building, potentially saving their lives,” said Mike Drivdahl, Fort Worth Fire Department.

Paramedics on scene checked out everyone and determined there were no injuries from the fire.

The fire department said the contents inside the building were lost in the fire, but the structure in itself seems to be okay.