Off-Duty FDNY EMT, Firefighter Save Two in Burning House

July 2, 2020
An off-duty FDNY EMT was in his backyard in Queens when neighbors told him about the house fire, and another firefighter performed a "unique operation" to rescue an individual from the blaze.

An off-duty FDNY EMT and a firefighter responding to the call rescued two people from a burning house Wednesday.

The fire broke out at around 4:15 p.m. at a home in Queens, AM New York reports. Daniel Marcano, an FDNY EMT assigned to Station 39, was nearby in his backyard when neighbors told him about the fire, the department said in an online update.

"I ran to the front of the house and saw the smoke," Marcano said in a statement. "As I got closer, I realized that the house that was on fire was occupied by my neighbors, and they were inside. I kicked in the front door, and I got low and made my way into the house, about 7-10 feet.

"One of my neighbors started to walk towards me. There was a lot of smoke. I carried them out of the house and across the street. At that moment, they told me that their friend was still inside the house."

Once FDNY crews arrived, Marcano identified himself and told them about the possibility of another person inside the house.

"It all happened so fast, but it felt like second nature," Marcano stated. "I knew anyone in my position would have done the same thing.”

FDNY Lt. John Norman followed up on Marcano's information and made his way into the burning house to search for the person. He discovered the individual on the second floor, but instead of immediately escaping the fire, Norman took a different approach.

"When we arrived, we found an individual by the rear window," he said in a statement. "It was a very heavy smoke condition, so we made the decision to close the door to the room we were in to isolate them from the smoke. We were able to break the window for more air. They were very tough and made it through."

Norman eventually got the person out of the burning house once conditions settled.

"Everything went perfectly," Norman stated. "Our communication with each other was perfect and everyone knew exactly what they needed to do. This is the best outcome for this operation."

Both of the individuals rescued were taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation and were in stable condition. Firefighters needed about 40 minutes to get the blaze under control, according to AM New York.

Deputy Chief James DiDomenico acknowledged that Norman used an unusual tactic in the rescue, but it let the person breathe fresh air and avoid the flames.

“Our members made the conscious decision to not remove the individual from the room until the smoke had lifted and the fire was knocked down," he said. "This allowed the individual to get the fresh air that they needed until it was safe to proceed. It was a unique operation, but everything went smoothly.”

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