A man on the verge of unconsciousness was rescued from a burning home Thursday night by Turlock firefighters. The firefighters also were able to rescue the two family dogs from the blaze unharmed, the Turlock Fire Department reported.

The fire was reported around 9:30 p.m. Thursday at a home in the 700 block of Montana Avenue.

The first firefighters to arrive at the scene found smoke billowing out of the home and began making an initial interior fire attack, while simultaneously conducting search and rescue.

The firefighters found an adult man in the kitchen. He was semi-conscious and had serious injuries to his respiratory tract due to the smoke and the heat, said Turlock Fire spokesman Capt. Kevin Tidwell.

Firefighters got the man out of the home and began treatment until he was transferred to the care of an ambulance crew that arrived at the scene.

“Quick response time and aggressive firefighters saved a male occupant from an untimely death,” said Turlock Fire Chief Robert Talloni.

The search also turned up the family’s two dogs — Cinnamon and Bones — who were unharmed. The dogs were cared for by the firefighters until family members arrived at the scene.

Crews made progress fighting the fire from the inside of the home and from the roof and quickly brought it under control.

Turlock Fire Department responded to the incident with three engines, Squad 32, one battalion chief, one fire investigator, and the Chief of the Department for a total of 15 personnel. The Ceres Fire Department responded to the incident with one engine and one battalion chief as part of a resource sharing agreement.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Any information regarding the investigation should be directed to Fire Investigator Jason Bernard at jbernard@turlock.ca.us.