THROOP - A state fire marshal has ruled the early morning fire that severely injured a man and damaged his home to be arson.
Tom McDonnell, of Throop, has been taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital where he is in critical condition, said Lehigh Valley spokeswoman Tracey Sechler.
Fire marshals have ruled that Mr. McDonnell was the lone occupant of the residence.
Throop Fire and Hose Company 2 Chief Eric Hartshorn said companies responded to 7E Memorial Drive around 2:30 a.m. Thursday. They were told by police there was entrapment in the home. Fire crews from the Dunmore Fire Department were able to pull Mr. McDonnell from the home while flames raged around them, Chief Hartshorn said.
"The apartment was still on fire, the first thing they did was go get him," Chief Hartshorn said.
Within 20 minutes, crews knocked the flames down but the inside of the house was a charred wreck.
Executive director of the Lackawanna County Housing Authority Jim Dartt said no other residents in the complex have been displaced as a result of the fire. Damage has not been done to any of the other houses.
"The next step is to secure that apartment and then began the restoration of it as soon as the investigation is complete," Mr. Dartt said.
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