Collier County man saved in neighborhood blaze

NAPLES, Fla. — A man was saved from a fire that engulfed his home and threatened two others in the Naples Park neighborhood on Tuesday night.

The man said it was the actions of a heroic deputy that saved him from the flames after he slipped while trying to escape. The deputy, who was responding to a call about a domestic disturbance up the street, pulled the man out of the home by his leg, according to the North Naples fire department.

“We’re lucky a deputy had gotten in there before and actually did the life saving and we were able to go in there quickly and extinguish the fire — prevent it from actually traveling through to the other dwellings and causing a catastrophic damage,” Assistant Chief Jorge Aguilera said.

Investigators say the flames were ignited by a cigarette. Firefighters are using the incident to warn about the importance of smoke alarms, though it is unclear whether there were functional alarms at the time of the fire.

Families are staying in the two other homes while the man who the deputy rescued is staying with a co-worker.

Authorities are still investigating.