Coordination at the scene of an
emergency in the most dangerous
fire conditions--above
a fire floor--led to a positive outcome
for a 63-year-old woman trapped
above a raging fire. EMS personnel
rescued her and treated her on the
scene of a fire before her already
unstable medical condition could
worsen.
The fire began just at the start of
rush hour in the busy, Fort Greene
section of Brooklyn on October 28,
2005. A passerby flagged down EMS
Lieutenant Barry Travis, who was on
patrol in the area. He radioed in the
call to the Brooklyn North
Dispatcher, telling them the location
of the fire was 488 Waverly Place.
With no fire suppression units on
the scene and without any protective
gear, Lieutenant Travis entered the
four-story building, yelling and banging
on the doors of the building. After
alerting all the tenants of the dangerous
situation, he returned to street
level where he was met by
Paramedics Gary Smiley and Carlos
A. Lizcano.
As Lieutenant Travis began to
brief the team, an elderly woman
called for help from a fourth-floor
window and said she was about to
jump. Paramedics Smiley and
Lizcano quickly ran into the building,
crawling up four smoke-filled flights,
past the third floor, which was
engulfed in flames.
Fearing the rapidly deteriorating
conditions, EMT Smiley hastened
their departure by carrying the weakened
woman down the stairs in near
darkness, amid the deafening noise of
windows being blown out from the
heat and pressure of the fire on the
third floor.
Once safely out of the building,
the two immediately began to treat
the woman for difficulty in breathing
and chest pains. After being treated
with high-concentration oxygen, the
woman was taken to Brooklyn
Hospital for further evaluation.
The Department is recognizing
the three--Lieutenant Barry Travis
and Paramedics Gary Smiley and
Carlos Lizcano--for placing themselves
at risk to effect the rescue of a
civilian. It is with great pride that they
are presented with the Tracy Allen-
Lee Medal.--TCDM |
