ADAMS COUNTY, Colo. – Fire investigators and sheriff’s office detectives are investigating whether a man lit his apartment on fire Monday morning as his landlord tried to evict him.
Deputies and firefighters responded to a call about smoke coming from a home in the 2100 block of McDougal Street just after 8:30 a.m. and rescued a man from the home’s basement, the sheriff’s office said in a news release Monday afternoon.
The sheriff’s office said that the building’s landlord had been trying to evict the man from his apartment in the basement and that the man had met threats about starting a fire on Monday morning.
“A fire subsequently ensued,” the sheriff’s office said in its release, though it was still unclear how the fire started.
The man who was rescued suffered life-threatening injuries, the sheriff’s office said, and was taken to an area hospital. Three dogs were also rescued, according to an Adams County Fire Rescue spokesperson.
The landlord was unharmed, the sheriff’s office said. The fire was out by just after 9 a.m.
Officials said the investigation was in its preliminary stages Monday afternoon and was ongoing.
