DUNDALK, Md. — Neighbors in Dundalk are in shock after an early morning fire killed a woman and left a man in critical condition.
The woman has been identified as 70-year-old Barbara Spokus.
It was an alarming wake-up call in the middle of the night to neighbors in the 3100 block of Shortway.
"Banging on my front door, it was close to 2:30 in the morning. I ran down the stairs, and I looked out to see who it was, and it was Tom. So I opened the door, and he yelled, 'I have [a] fire, please call 9-1-1,'” said the neighbor who called 911.
The neighbor, who wished to remain anonymous, said the house was already engulfed in flames.
Al Donaldson, who lives across the street, saw the blaze from his window and heard the desperate call for help from the man who lives in the home.
"I heard him yell to the firemen about my wife,” said Donaldson. “Then they had to cut into the roof to get entrance in there where they could spray."
Watch as neighbors provide their reactions to the fire:
“Our crews immediately went into attacking the fire. During their search of the home, they located an adult female [who] was pronounced deceased at the scene,” said Lt. Travis Francis, a spokesperson for the Baltimore County Fire Department.
Lt. Francis said the fire was started by discarded smoking materials.
"In this instance, it was a cigarette somewhere inside the home. We haven't identified exactly where," said Francis.
The man was transported to the hospital and is currently in critical condition.
A wake-up call for those like Chelsea Welsh, who also lives across the street.
"It definitely made me think to check my smoke alarms because my kids sleep upstairs, so it makes you think,” said Welsh.
Francis said to always know two ways out of your home and warned against smoking inside.
“If you are smoking inside your home, you should make sure you are using a metal can, an ashtray, or a ceramic ashtray. You're making sure those ashes and embers are completely extinguished.”
Francis added a dog was also killed in the fire.
Neighbor Donaldson expressed more concern, stating, “It's a senseless death because it was preventable.”
