CASSELBERRY, Fla. --
A Central Florida man was killed when exploding oxygen tanks trapped him in his burning home.
"Just to hear the poor man screaming for his life and nobody could get to him," homeowner Rebecca Prettyman said.
Firefighters responded to the house fire on Jericho Drive in Casselberry Sunday and were told an elderly man who had just finished physical therapy was trapped inside.
Witnesses said the man was on oxygen and needed a walker to move around.
The house was engulfed in flames so firefighters were not able to reach the man.
However, before firefighters arrived, neighbors made a rescue attempt.
"I heard him screaming for his life and within not even a second, an explosion came through and blew me back and I felt fire all over me," neighbor Kris Truszkowski said.
Homeowners pulled children out of surrounding homes as the fire threatened to spread.
"There were 20- to 30-foot flames," neighbor Todd Donahue said. "All we started doing was grabbing babies and grabbing kids."
The wife of the victim said she noticed smoke near a sofa. Fire crews said they believe the blaze may have been sparked by some sort of an electrical problem.
Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.
Copyright 2008 by Internet Broadcasting Systems and Local6.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
