Hero bobby to the rescue
Published: March 16, 2005
A brave bobby is being hailed as a “hero” after he rescued a four-year-old boy from a burning house.
PC Iain Morrison, 39, acted after the boy was left stranded upstairs in his home in Whitefoot Terrace, Downham.
Now police and fire chiefs have united in their praise of the Catford-based dog handler.
PC Morrison was in the area on Friday afternoon. He was on a routine patrol when he spotted smoke coming from inside the terraced house.
The boy’s mother, who was standing outside with her six year-old daughter, then alerted him her son was still in the building.
PC Morrison burst into the house and fought his way through the thick smoke.
He heard the screams of the boy and grabbed his arm, before passing him through an upstairs window to waiting firefighters.
He said: “It was frightening. The heat was intense and I couldn’t see a thing.
“For a while I did panic because I could not see the boy but then I heard him shout, so I grabbed him and took him to the window.
“I was there wearing my uniform and in the heat of the moment people expect you to do something but when I got inside I was worried I had bitten off more than I could chew.”
The modest police officer of 18 years added: “There are plenty of people who would have done the same thing.
“The fire brigade did a brilliant job. At the end of the day they put the fire out.”
A neighbour said: “The policeman did a blinding job. We could see the kid hanging out of the window and we all thought he was dead.
“It was amazing. My husband was going to go in to help but I wouldn’t let him.”
The two children and PC Morrison were treated for smoke inhalation but no-one was seriously injured.
Fire crews from Downham, Beckenham and Lee Green were called to the scene and put the fire out within 45 minutes.
Downham station commander Roger Willmore paid tribute to PC Morrison, calling him “a hero”.
Lewisham police’s Inspector Henry Davies, who was on duty at the time of the fire, added the PC had acted “in the best traditions of the Metropolitan Police”.
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