Firefighters Rescue Woman from Upper East Side Fire
Ladder 2 operating at a fire in 2007.
The bravery and quick-thinking of firefighters from Ladder 2 - including Lt. Charles McCormack and Firefighters Chris Lynch, Kenneth Kresse, Thomas Linehan, John Tota and Sean Deans - saved the life of a woman trapped by fire in her apartment on Feb. 21.
"Everyone worked together and really did a great job today," said Lt. McCormack.
Firefighters were called to a fire on the second floor of a high-rise building on East 73rd Street just after 2 p.m.
The members of Engine 22 reached the fire apartment first and forced open the locked door. Black smoke filled the apartment from ceiling to floor and firefighters from Ladder 2 entered to begin their search.
Lt. McCormack said, "We made it in 10 feet and could feel the high-heat of the fire - so we knew it was ahead of us."
In the lobby of the building, chiefs were told by building residents that they believed there was someone trapped inside.
As they moved forward, they felt the fire straight ahead. Lt. McCormack said he went left, towards the heat to locate the fire; and Firefighter Lynch went right, toward the back bedrooms to search for victims.
"[Firefighter] Lynch had to pass the fire to do his search," Lt. McCormack said. "He could have easily been stuck back there if the fire got worse."
It was there Firefighter Lynch found an unconscious woman, who appeared to be in her 60s, lying on the floor near her computer desk. He radioed to Lt. McCormack, who said he grabbed the woman's arms as Firefighter Lynch lifted her feet to carry her out of the apartment.
Since there were bars on the windows, they were forced to pass the fire again and walk her out the apartment door. They were met in the hallway by the members of Engine 39, who carried her to EMS members downstairs.
The woman was unconscious, but had a pulse, and was transported to Weill-Cornell Medical Center. Her husband was not home at the time of the fire.