Injured Firefighter Recounts Near-Death Experience In Wilkinsburg

WILKINSBURG (KDKA) – A group of Pittsburgh firefighters is being recognized for their heroism after they put themselves in harm's way to rescue a woman from her burning home, and Sunday, one of them talked about his near-death experience.

When firefighters arrived at the burning house on Ross Avenue, they were told that 86-year-old grandmother Nannie Poole could not walk and was trapped in a second-floor bedroom. Lt. James O'Toole braved dangerous conditions to find her.

"It was quite a bit of smoke. The layering of smoke was pretty much down to the floor," O'Toole said at a news conference Sunday. "It was very dark, and it was hard to see."

But years of training and experience kicked in. He heard coughing and carried Nannie Poole to a window where she was taken to safety.

"She didn't say anything," O'Toole said. "She was breathing and somewhat incoherent, but the good news was she was breathing."

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"Because of their sacrifice, or what they were willing to sacrifice, Mrs. Felder is still with us, and I'm very grateful for that," Fire Chief Darryl Jones said.

As the 3-alarm fire burned out of control, that was only the beginning of their sacrifice. After the rescue, five firefighters were caught in the bedroom during a flashover.

"What happens in a flashover, all the contents in the room reach ignition temperature at the same time, so the paint on the wall starts to burn, the furniture starts to burn, the carpet on the floor starts to burn," Chief Jones explained.

With the temperatures rising to over 1,500 degrees, they had seconds to get out or face death.

"I just felt really hot. I wanted to stick around for my niece," O'Toole said. "Luckily, I found a window, and I was like, 'I got to get out of here somehow' ... I jumped out a back window."

Four others also escaped from windows. Two firefighters on the ground were hurt trying to catch their brothers after they jumped. O'Toole burned his hand and suffered a concussion.

"We're all lucky," he said. "By the grace of God, we're all alive. It was very close."