CHESTERFIELD, Va. -- It's the noise that first pops into Johnnie Lynn Coleman's mind when she thinks back on the fatal house fire she witnessed across the street from her Chesterfield home.
"We could hear pinging. I thought it was one of my nephews working on the four-wheelers. It sounded like metal tools," neighbor Coleman said, who knows the victims personally. “It was the aluminum on the house on fire, the pinging noise.”
One person was killed and one person was injured in critical condition after they were pulled from a burning Chesterfield home Tuesday morning, according to Chesterfield Fire.
A neighbor driving on Lansmill Drive in the Mill Side subdivision of South Chesterfield called 911 at 1:17 a.m. when they spotted the fire, officials said.
Fire crews arrived five minutes later and found the mobile home fully engulfed in flames. It took fire crews 30 minutes to extinguish the fire.
A woman was found dead inside the home, and her adult son was found outside when fire crews arrived, officials and witnesses said. The man was taken to the hospital in critical condition.
“They’re like best friends, mother and son," Coleman said. She said the victim lived across the street from her for 12 years.
"She kept my spare key, let my dog out when I’d go out of town. She was trustworthy," Coleman said.
Before fire crews arrived, a family friend of Coleman's noticed five propane tanks sitting next to the home. She said he rushed in to grab them before they exploded.
“When I got ten feet from the gate, it was so hot that I wasn’t even able to get any closer," Coleman said. "The fireman said they would have been like a huge bomb had they went off, so he risked his own life. They could’ve gone off at any moment. It’s amazing to me that he didn’t think, he just acted for strangers. He’s definitely a hero.”
The loss is a huge one for the Mill Side community, according to Coleman. Her heart turns toward the family members her neighbor leaves behind.
“I’m at a loss for words. Some of the kids have already been making cards,” Coleman said. “Just like they were willing to help us with anything we needed. We’re willing to do the same. I’m hoping that if there’s anything they need they’ll be reaching out to let us help.”
The Fire Marshal continues investigating the cause of the fire, but previously, officials said there were no signs of foul play.
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