Responders honored for saving residents

Every firefighter, police officer or paramedic has signed up to save lives. And they know that eventually there will be a time when the rescue involves them risking injury or even death.

“It’s in the back of my mind every single day. But it’s also in the back of my mind every single day to go home,” said Lansford Patrolman Vince Morrow.

Morrow and two Lansford firefighters — Frank Marek and Assistant Chief Ron Hood — are being celebrated as heroes for rescuing a couple from a house filled with dangerous levels of carbon monoxide — with no oxygen masks — on Feb. 5.

All three men risked their lives by going into a home with dangerous levels of the gas because they knew that if they waited, it could be too late.

“I really do believe that if they would have been in that environment any longer, that they may not have recovered from the carbon monoxide poisoning,” said Joseph Greco, chief of American Fire Co. No. 1.

A few minutes after the rescue, firefighters using carbon monoxide detectors found that levels were over 500 ppm, which is enough to kill a person after just a few hours.

The whole event unfolded in just a few minutes.

Quick response

Morrow was on duty in the borough the night of Feb. 5, when he was dispatched to a home on East Patterson Street. The dispatcher said that the caller didn’t hang up, but stopped communicating on the phone.

Luckily, Morrow has more than a decade experience with ambulance companies. Relying on his experience he immediately suspected carbon monoxide poisoning and had American Fire Co. No. 1 dispatched to the scene.

Marek happens to live across the street from the home. He made the crucial decision to go directly to the call, rather than to the fire station.

The two men looked in the windows of the home and saw a man slumped over a chair in the kitchen. Beneath him, they could see feet, which were his wife’s.

Morrow knew that based on their condition, time could be of the essence. Even though they had no ventilators with them, the two men decided to go inside.

“My mindset was, ‘I have to get in there to help them,’” Morrow said. “I have to get them out, and I have to do it safely and as fast as possible.”

The man was not fully unconscious, he was still taking shallow breaths. They knew that the woman would be their priority. They were able to move her out of the house and onto the porch.

Hood, who is a chief, drives directly to the scene so he can prepare the firefighters, was arriving as they got her onto the porch. He knew they needed assistance.

“They were yelling ‘We need help.’ I just ran across the street and started doing what we did,” Hood said.

The three men then went back in to get the male. He responded to their questions but was unable to walk out of the house. All three had to work together to get the man out.

Around that time, roughly three minutes after the initial call, the first fire truck was arriving. The firefighters on board were equipped with air tanks.

“I was yelling to the guys, ‘get in here, we need help,’” Morrow said.

Firefighters moved the couple off their porch and into the grass while they received oxygen.

Morrow told a firefighter that there were animals in the house. They brought out the family’s dog, and got him a tank too.

“After about a minute, the dog started wagging his tail. I know the animals were just as appreciative as they were.”

The firefighters used carbon monoxide detectors which revealed levels of 560 ppm in the kitchen where they were found. According to OSHA, levels of 400 ppm can be life threatening after just a few hours of exposure.

Because carbon monoxide is a colorless and odorless gas, there is no telling how long it was building in the home.

The department determined that the carbon monoxide was caused by a blocked chimney on a home heating stove.

Training kicks in

All three men said they did what they have been trained to do. It’s the reason that they volunteered for their jobs. Hood joined American Fire Co. when he was 18 and has stayed in for 32 years. He said any of his brothers in the fire company would do the same thing.

Marek said while you train to use all of the appropriate equipment and safety, in a moment like he faced, you just react.

“It’s just something that you do. It’s hard to explain until you’re put into that situation yourself,” he said. “Your safety kind of gets put in the back.”

It also helps that the men cross train. Every member of Lansford Police Department is always welcome to do training with the fire company, Mayor James Romankow said.

Police Chief Jack Soberick said he looks for officers who have experience as paramedics, like Morrow.

It wasn’t the first time Hood or Morrow were credited with saving lives either. Morrow, who works part-time for multiple departments was honored for his work as a police officer in Weatherly borough. During a 2016 arson fire, Morrow woke a family who was sleeping in the house next door and disconnected their propane tank. The house was a total loss. Hood was honored along with Chief Greco for rescuing a man who was trapped beneath a vehicle several years ago.

The men also credited the homeowner himself for making the call. Morrow said he’s confident that if the homeowner hadn’t been able to begin to notify 911, the outcome could have been much different. Marek agreed.

“If the homeowner hadn’t called to get it started, it would have been a lot worse scenario,” Marek said.

Mayor’s honor

The men were honored by the borough with a lifesaving commendation from American Fire Co. No. 1, which they can wear on their dress uniforms. Mayor James Romankow presented a letter of commendation at the council meeting in February. Romankow said he is grateful that the local fire and police have each other’s backs and act like one big family. He also thanked the men for their bravery in responding to the situation.

“They went in without oxygen masks on. They went in knowing that the carbon monoxide could affect them. But they did not hesitate,” Romankow said.

And the men say that they wouldn’t hesitate to do it again.

“It’s part of the job and something I signed up to do, to help people, to save lives, to make a difference in someone’s life,” Morrow said.