The officer noticed the smoke and fire while on patrol after midnight and was able to personally save 2 residents before succumbing to smoke inhalation.
A police officer in Lyons, Illinois, is being credited with saving the residents of an apartment building that went up in flames early Monday morning. The Chicago Tribune reports that the officer, who is a 30-year veteran of the Lyons Police force, was on patrol a little after midnight, “when he spotted smoke and flames in a five-unit building.” He rushed inside after alerting police and fire dispatchers, and was able to lead a man and child to safety before “being overcome by smoke.”
According to officials, once firefighters arrived on the scene they saw that the fire was spreading rapidly and worked quickly to evacuate the building’s 11 other residents. A resident, Mary Jones, who was trapped on the second floor had to drop her toddler into the arms of pokice and firefighters on the ground and then use a ladder to escape the burning building. She said, “I just wanted to make sure she was safe. So I just hurried up and gave her to the police so she would get out of the building. . .I knew if I would have opened the door, like the fire would have just been blazing, so I went back to the window.”
Commander Brian Kuratko said the officer’s quick thinking and decisive actions saved the lives of the sleeping residents in the apartment building. He said, “We’re real proud of what he did. We got very lucky here. . .This building went up very fast.”
The officer is being treated at a local hospital, but is expected to make a full recovery.
Photo: Screen shot/WGN-TV