Former UFC champion Mark Coleman hospitalized after saving his parents from burning building
Former UFC champion Mark Coleman risked his life to save his parents.
It's believed that Coleman's family home in Fremont, California, burst into flames in the early hours of Tuesday morning (March 12).
Coleman was on hand to come to his parent's aid and successfully managed to get them out of the building - which has been labelled as a 'total loss' by the fire department.
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After saving his parents, the 59-year-old retired UFC fighter went back into the burning building in a bid to save their dog named Hammer, but sadly the beloved pet didn't make it.
Coleman has since been hospitalized for smoke inhalation, his manager has confirmed.
Michael DiSabato shared with NBC News that Coleman was rushed to a Toledo hospital by helicopter.
By means of a miracle, his parents have not been injured in the scary ordeal.
According to Coleman's daughter Morgan, he is now 'fighting for his life'.
Sharing a throwback snap of her as a child with her father and her sister Kenzie, Morgan penned on Instagram: "As many know, our dad was involved in a house fire early this morning along with his parents and beloved dog, hammer. He managed to carry both of his parents out of the house but despite his best efforts was not able to save hammer. He was life-flighted to the hospital where he is currently battling for his life after this heroic act.
"Our father has always been our hero and means the world to us. He is and always will be a fighter. The strongest snd bravest man I know. Please continue to pray for him and our family during this extremely difficult time. We will miss our sweet hammer so deeply."
She went on to thank people for their love and support.
Kenzie added in the comments section of the moving post: "Thank you everyone for your words. I will miss my baby boy hammer every single day. There hasn’t been a second where he isn’t on my mind. My heart is completely shattered. Please keep praying for my daddy."
It's believed that the blaze may have started in the kitchen, which Coleman was alerted to by the family's late dog, Hammer.
The fire took hours for firefighters to extinguish as they struggled to tackle the 'hot spots'.
It's said that seven different fire departments were on hand to help.
Niamh Shackleton