Firefighter on the mend

A Kelowna firefighter who suffered serious burns after he and three others were trapped in a burning condo on July 8 is expected to be released from hospital Monday.

Chris Zimmermann and three other firefighters entered the unfinished Water's Edge condo in the early stages of the fire.

“It got really bad up there,” said Gerry Zimmermann, Chris's father and the former fire chief of Kelowna. “(Chris) tried to radio for help ... he took off his gloves to try and get his radio to work, and that's when his hands got burned.”

The four of them made it to a balcony as the building burned around them. Firefighters on the ground rushed to their rescue, extending a ladder, and they scrambled down to safety.

Chris was taken to Kelowna General Hospital with serious burns on his hands, calves, back and ears.

“They're pretty optimistic that he's going to make a full recovery, but one of the plastic surgeons told me Saturday that until the healing starts, you never know with burns,” his father said.

“He's in good spirits and just happy that it wasn't any worse.”