2 Children Rescued From Mobile Home Fire
Published: June 27, 2007
An act of heroism by a Forest Lake firefighter early Wednesday morning saved the lives of two children trapped inside burning mobile home.
Deputy Chief Bruce Wightman was the first to arrive at 97 Lee St. just after 1 a.m. to see flames and smoke pouring out of the front bedroom window of a residence in the Woodlund Mobile Home Park, said Fire Chief Gary Sigfrinius.
Wightman learned that two children were inside and, without putting on his gear, he used a police officer’s baton to break a back door window and reached in to unlock the door, Sigfrinius said.
Wightman crawled a short distance down a smoke-filled hallway and found the children, a 6-year-old boy and a 4-year-old girl, in a bedroom in the rear of the mobile home. He carried them out one at a time and handed them to a police officer. The children were taken to Hennepin County Medical Center, where they are in fair condition, Sigfrinius said.
The children’s mother was able to escape unhurt.
Wightman didn’t put on gear because “there wasn’t time to get it on” and save the children, Sigfrinius said. But no one without proper training should ever enter a burning house, he added.
“Absolutely not,” Sigfrinius said. “He is a trained firefighter and he knew what he was getting into and knew how far he could crawl. I never recommend this for a civilian. He showed a lot of bravery.”
Sigfrinius said his department is working with the state Fire Marshal’s office to determine a cause.
No firefighters were hurt and no damage to adjacent structures was reported.
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