At approximately 02:07 a.m. Monday morning, Clinton County Central Dispatch received a 911 call that a house was filled with heavy smoke in the 800 block of Hawthorne Ave. The caller reported they were on the second floor and could not exit. The caller further reported a baby was present and was having trouble breathing. Dispatchers provided life safety measures as police and fire were dispatched. FPD Officers, Sergeant Andrew Snyder, Officer Freddy Martinez and Officer Madison Douglass, arrived within one minute of the 911 call.
Officers immediately recognized the need to get the occupants from the residence. Flames were shooting out the front of the house with heavy smoke preventing an exit from the second floor. Sergeant Snyder quickly found a ladder and first removed the baby from the second story window. After that, all occupants were safely removed through the window and down a ladder.
“I am very proud of these officers for their quick, heroic actions,” said Chief Scott Shoemaker. “They will be honored by the police department at a later date.”
Award nominations begin at the shift or public level and work their way up to the Chief of Police. In this case we received both types of nominations. Sergeant Snyder wrote a nomination for his officers but left his own heroic work out. Captain Evan Hall reviewed the body camera footage and wrote a nomination for all three officers.
“I chose recommending the Medal of Valor due to all three officers”, stated Captain Hall. “They all showed an extraordinary act of bravery by removing a total of six (6) occupants out to safety under extreme stress and life-threatening conditions.”
“All officers displayed heroic efforts in their quick actions during this extreme and life- threatening incident.” said Deputy Chief Cesar Muñoz. “I am very proud of these officers for their heroic actions which lead to a successful outcome.”
A family member wrote the following, in part, on social media, “My sisters apartment caught on fire last night. Thank you, God, that everyone was saved. Thank you, Frankfort Police station, for being there…I hope they get recognition for their bravery.”
The fire is under investigation by the Frankfort Fire Department. No information about the fire or cause of fire will be released by our agency.