Award for blaze hero milkman
Published: March 7, 2007
A hero milkman who saved a disabled couple from their burning home is to be honoured for his bravery.
Gary Cant was on his round in the Tyne Valley when he saw flames billowing out of a house in Warden View, Wall, near Hexham, Northumberland, at 4am on November 22 last year.
He found Raymond Craig, 65, struggling to get his 86-year-old parents Norman and Mona out of their semi-detached home.
Gary, 42, ran into the house to save Mr Craig, who had lost both legs in the Second World War, as his wife and son were escaping.
He found him in the bathroom upstairs, where the flames were touching the back of Mr Craig’s wheelchair, and managed to tip him forwards and carry him downstairs.
Just 10 minutes after rescuing the pensioner, Gary and his colleague completed their milk round as 18 firefighters spent an hour tackling the blaze.
Yesterday the Dairy Farmers of Britain announced it will give the father-of-three its Milk Heroes Award in recognition of his bravery.
Gary, of Eilansgate, Hexham, a milkman in the area for 16 years, said he was proud to receive the award, but was more concerned that the family were safe.
He said: “Looking back now I think `Why did you do that?’ I had a lad helping me that day and he was shouting at me not to go in.
“But I knew the old man had no legs and just thought `I have to go in’. The fire was touching the back of his wheelchair so I had to tip him on my back.
“We got him wrapped up next door, two fire engines, about 10 policemen and an ambulance arrived and after about five minutes I just said `Let’s get back to work’.
“If someone gets up and their milk isn’t there, they’ll assume I’ve made a mistake and I’ll get about 400 phone calls at about 8am.”
Gary is still receiving treatment to a knee he injured in the rescue, after which Raymond Craig thanked Gary for his help. The Craigs are still living elsewhere while the repair work on their home is being completed.
Gary will receive his award on Thursday at the Dairy Farmers of Britain Depot in Hexham.
Edmund Proffitt, processing manager at Dairy UK, said: “Gary is a first-class example of the work that milkmen often do over and above their normal duties.
“He saw a problem and acted promptly.
“We in the dairy industry are very proud of him and this award is a small way of showing our appreciation for all that he does in the local community.”
If you enjoyed this good news Subscribe to Good News Blog
Share this
To share this simply copy and paste one of the below URL's: