FDNY TV

“The occupants outside the building were waving us in, they said that a disabled man was trapped on the first floor in his apartment. When we got to the bedroom there was heavy smoke and a growing fire inside. There was a lot of debris in the apartment. Firefighter Riley found the patient in the corner of the bedroom. He had rolled off the bed while trying to escape, and he was unconscious,” says FDNY Lieutenant Andrew B. Bowman of Ladder 58, who assisted Firefighters Christopher J. Reilly and Thomas J. Wutz, Jr. last night with the rescue of a patient in the Bronx. Says Firefighter Reilly, “As soon as I opened the bedroom door, I got hit with a wave of heat. The fire was to my left and was rolling up the wall, and we couldn’t see at all. Firefighter Wutz held back the fire with the can [portable extinguisher] and I started checking the floor, feeling around. When I felt his shoulder I said, ‘I’ve got him!’ but he was in such an awkward, twisted position amongst the debris that I couldn’t get behind him. Firefighter Wutz put down the can and came to help me, and we carried him out through the fire, crouching as it rolled over our heads. I could hear the patient breathing, so I knew he was alive.” Once outside, additional units took over patient care while members from Engine 45 and other companies brought the fire under control. The patient was transported to Jacobi Medical Center. Pictured: FDNY members from Ladder 58 – Firefighter Ryan Bourke, Lieutenant Andrew Bowman, Firefighter Christopher Reilly, Firefighter John Daly, Jr., Firefighter William Smith, Firefighter Thomas Wutz, Jr.