No one should ever underestimate the power of a fire. I know people who died in them, thinking there was less danger than there was. Very sad.
I witnessed a neighbor's house go up in flames and burn to the ground. What made the biggest impression on me was the SPEED in which it burned! It just kept gaining momentum. From the time we first saw smoke until it was fully engulfed was about 8 minutes.
Here recently, a husband and wife escaped their burning home unscathed. The husband went back into the house to call 911. He perished. Unbelievably crazy move on his part.