Family narrowly escapes house fire in Camden County: 'All of us could have perished'

PINE HILL, N.J. - Seven people were able to escape a raging house fire that erupted overnight in Camden County, according to officials. 

What we know:

Firefighters were called to a home on Erial Road in Pine Hill around 1 a.m. Tuesday for reports of a house fire. 

Officials say a family of seven people were able to escape the flames, including one man who jumped out a back window and an 18-year-old who sustained burns on his hands.

It took firefighters about 40 minutes to put the fire under control. Battalion Chief Sal Pizzo described a "labor-intensive" firefight that required crews to run 800 ft. and 900 ft. hose lines.

Seven people were taken to the hospital for evaluation, and all but one has been released.

What they're saying:

Lo Worrell, who lives at the home with her husband and four kids, said her 16-year-old son was up late and was first to hear the smoke alarm go off. 

"He heard the fire alarm and then he saw some smoke, so he ran down and said the house is on fire," Worrell told reporters. "We grabbed our kids immediately, our two young girls, 5 & 6, we came upstairs and we couldn't see a thing, the smoke was so black." 

Worrell said her husband Josh tried to go back into the house to rescue their other son, but he couldn't get past the flames.

"I was just on the ground preparing to bury my son, and he came running through the flames into my arms," she said. 

Worrell credited smoke detectors for keeping her and her family alive. 

"Make sure you have [smoke detectors], every house needs them, because we're a family of six and all of us could have perished in this fire if it wasn't for my son hearing the smoke alarm," Worrell said.

She identified the man who escaped through the window as her father. Worrell said he sustained burns on his back and is at a hospital in Philadelphia receiving treatment.

What we don't know:

Firefighters have not said how the fire started.