House fire in Midtown Anchorage injures 2, officials say

Two people were hospitalized for injuries suffered in a house fire Thursday night, the Anchorage Fire Department said.

One person was in critical condition while the other was described as being in stable condition, the department said Friday.

The fire was reported at 10 p.m., officials said. Both people were inside the home on the 1600 block of Northwestern Avenue when the fire started, AFD spokeswoman Lexi Qass’uq Trainer said in an email. They were able to leave the house on their own and then were taken by the fire department to the hospital, she said.

Firefighters had the blaze under control within 32 minutes after it was reported around 10 p.m., Qass’uq Trainer said.

The house is not safe to live in, but the full extent of damage had not been determined by Friday, she said.

The cause of the fire was under investigation, but investigators believe it may have started in the kitchen, the department said. They urged residents to have a fire extinguisher that’s appropriate for kitchen use, as well as an evacuation plan.