An elderly woman and her dog were rescued from a house fire in Joshua Tree early this morning. According to Fire Captain Steve Lasiter, firefighters were called to a structure fire in the 8200 block of Star Lane about 2 a.m. Monday. Lasiter said the woman had fallen asleep in bed while smoking a cigarette. The woman and a male friend escaped from the home, but then the woman went back inside to rescue her dog. Lasiter said her friend tried to go in after her, but was driven out by the smoke. When firefighters arrived, the man was fighting the fire with a garden hose, and the woman and her dog were still inside, overcome by the smoke. Firefighters went in and were able to rescue both the woman and her dog. Thanks to the man’s efforts with the garden hose, firefighters were able to knock down the fire very quickly, limiting the fire damage mostly to the home’s contents. Both the woman and her friend were taken to Hi-Desert Medical Center for smoke inhalation.
