A fire in Irving destroyed a home at 2021 Scarlet Oaks Drive early Thursday morning.
The homeowners both escaped the fire safely but said they lost two cats in the fire.
The fire broke out shortly after midnight Thursday, but firefighters spent more than six hours at the scene clearing rubble and watering down hot spots. The flames were so intense that the house burned to the ground.
Homeowner Abimael Acosta lost his hearing aids in the fire but said he heard several loud “pop” noises at the back of the house right before he saw black smoke. Acosta suspects it was an electrical fire.
“When I opened the door, a blast of pressure or something. Just kind of pushed me out. In fact I got burned here, I didn’t even know,” he said. “It felt like just a blast of air, but it was black smoke.”
Irving firefighters confirm the fire started in the back of the house but said they didn’t have a cause yet. Firefighters said their focus right now is on moving away all of the rubble and making sure there’s no burning embers or ash.
Abimael and Igrid Acosta said they have lived in the home for almost 40 years and said the loss of all their personal items leaves them in shock.
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"It's heartbreaking, it makes me sick," Igrid said.
"I guess it hasn't hit me yet that everything's gone," said Abimael. "What's left is all wet."
"He was a photographer," Igrid said of her husband. "So he's got thousands of pictures, it looks like they saved a lot of the pictures, but there will be water damage."
The fire threatened another home next door after an outbuilding caught on fire. Firefighters called for a second alarm to bring in additional resources to fight the fire and to contend with a fireplug that did not open completely.
Eventually, firefighters were able to take a defensive stance and used a deck gun from atop a fire engine to knock down the fire.
NBC 5's Jeff Smith contributed to this report.
