A North Whidbey man suffered second and third degree burns to his foot when a fire partially burned his home Friday.

According to North Whidbey Fire and Rescue Battalion Chief Jobie Gause, the fire originated in the kitchen of the man’s trailer home by Highway 20, and the cause of the fire is under investigation.

The call was made at 6:41 a.m., with North Whidbey Fire and Rescue and Station 71 from Naval Air Station Whidbey Island arriving on the scene at 6:54 a.m., Gause said.

By then, the resident had managed to put out part of the fire by himself, using a garden hose.

“I wish I could hire him,” Gause said.

The fire reached the inside of the roof but did not spread to the outside. Because of this, firefighters had to get in and rip out the cabinets and exhaust fan to extinguish the flames before they spread outside.

“We were trying not to tear the guy’s house up, but we had to,” Gause said, explaining the flames would have gotten much bigger and more dangerous had they not done so.

Crews left at 8:04 a.m. and the man, whose foot was burned, did not want an ambulance, Gause said.