A McCully man was injured rescuing his young son after fire tore through the second floor of the building they lived in yesterday.

The fire occurred at a two-story residential building at 914 Makahiki Way.

Thirty-five firefighters responded to the blaze at 9:22 a.m. The fire was under control at 9:49 a.m. and extinguished at 11:30 a.m.

Some neighbors said they saw billowing black smoke and flames coming from the second floor.

"When we got here, the entire top floor was involved in fire," said Capt. Terry Seelig, spokesman for the Honolulu Fire Department.

Fourteen residents, 12 of whom were home at the time of the fire, were displaced, according to Seelig. All residents except for one escaped without injury.

There are three one-bedroom units on each floor of the building.

Neighbor Della Figir said she heard a man yelling out his son’s name and glass breaking at the time of the fire.

Soon after the father and son escaped, Mike Mafnas, who lived in the unit next door, said he noticed a gash on the man’s right forearm.

"He was bleeding like crazy," Mafnas said.

Mafnas said he took off the brand new Gucci leather belt he was wearing and used it as a tourniquet, tying it tightly around the injured man’s arm to try to stop the bleeding until firefighters and paramedics arrived.

"I held it as tight as I could until they got there," he said as he stood outside of the building while firefighters extinguished smoldering spots in the structure.

Seelig said the man also appeared to have suffered cuts to his upper torso.

He was taken to the Queen’s Medical Center in serious condition. The victim’s son appeared to be shaken but did not have any visible injuries. He was also taken to the hospital to be evaluated.

It’s unclear whether the man suffered cuts from breaking through glass or from jagged glass that cracked from the heat of the fire as he and his son escaped from their unit.

The fire was confined to the second floor. Damage was estimated at $300,000 to the building and its contents. The exterior of three surrounding buildings did have some radiated heat damage estimated at $35,000.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

The American Red Cross made arrangements for residents of three units to stay at a hotel as the building was determined to be uninhabitable. Residents from three other units are staying with relatives and friends, according to Maria Lutz, director of disaster services.