URBANA — An Urbana woman was critically injured in a boarding house fire early Friday.

Fire Chief Mike Dilley said Ashley Ames, 25,  who lived at 814 W. Stoughton St., initially was taken to Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana. She later was transferred to Memorial Medical Center in Springfield, where she was listed in critical condition Friday afternoon. That hospital has a specialized burn unit.

Dilley said University of Illinois police officer Matt Ballinger spotted the fire and risked his life going into the burning home to rescue at least five others. After the fire was substantially out, firefighters found the woman, believed to be in her early 20s, in her bed on the second floor.

"We got a call at 4:23 a.m. of a fire on the porch of a house on the corner of Lincoln and Stoughton. We had major fire on the front porch and up a tree and going into the house. Our guys got it out and got inside. While doing a search, they discovered the victim on the second floor," Dilley said.

"She was in bed when we found her. She’s got some burns and probably smoke inhalation," Dilley said. "The room she was in was directly above where the fire originated."

Dilley said the fire was struck by 4:52 a.m. He said the house had smoke detectors that were sounding when firefighters arrived.

Dilley and other fire investigators remained on the scene hours after the fire was struck. They determined the fire started in a couch.

"There is no doubt it started on the front porch and there had been residents out on the porch about an hour before the fire was discovered," he said.

Dilley hailed Ballinger as a hero.

"He’s a member of the METRO team and was on his way to an assignment and saw the flames on the porch as he was driving by. He got out, forced the door on the east side of the house at huge risk to his own life, and started going through the house. He went up to the second and third levels and alerted residents that were asleep in the house and got five people out of the house. I can’t say enough about him," Dilley said.

"He was within seconds of being a victim himself. He got out and then shortly after that, we arrived," Dilley said, adding the rescued residents were asked if there was anyone else in the house but they didn’t identify anyone.

"We do a search regardless of what people say. During the primary search, one of our firefighters found her and another carried her out," Dilley said.

Firefighter Matt Ritchey found the woman and firefighter Chad Kingren carried her out and handed her over to emergency medical workers.

Dilley said the fire was across the front porch when firefighters arrived.

"It went into the living room, straight up the stairwell and into the second level," he said, adding that the third level is an attic that had been been converted into living space. The house is not livable. Firefighters hooked the residents up with Red Cross workers for temporary housing, he said.

The residents of the house are not related. Each has his or her own bedroom but they share common areas on the first floor, Dilley said.

He described the house as an older family home that is in the same design as it would have been when built.

Jamie Davis, emergency services coordinator for the Red Cross, said a volunteer went to the house to assist residents but they were being cared for by family or friends. They appeared to be between 18 and 22 years old.

"The young people were walking around outside bare-footed or in flip flops and blankets. They just got out with what they grabbed. At this time, they declined help," she said.