ND Medic Responds to Fire that Severely Burns 2-Year-Old Son

March 4, 2021
The son of a First Medic Ambulance EMS worker in Lisbon suffered second-degree burns over more than 30 percent of his body after his mattress caught fire.

A North Dakota medic responded to a mattress fire that seriously burned her 2-year-old son Tuesday.

The fire broke out at the Enderlin home of EMS worker Shelby Jankowski, who was working at First Medic Ambulance in Lisbon at the time," KVLY-TV reports. Jankowski's son, Royce, suffered second-degree burns over more than 30 percent of his bodies after his mattress caught fire.

Firefighters had rescued Royce and put out the flames by the time Jankowski and her colleague Tim Owen reached the scene via ambulance.

“I walk in the door and she says, ‘That’s my house. That’s my son. I have to go,’” Owen told KVLY.

“I was hoping that everything would be OK. I was hoping that Royce would be OK. I was hoping that Shelby would be calm enough. It’s her child,” he added.

Royce was airlifted to a Minnesota hospital, and he was sedated and intubated for smoke inhalation. He is scheduled to have surgeries this weekend and next week, and he's expected to be in the hospital undergoing treatments for eight to 12 weeks.

A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to help the family of Jankowski, who also serves with Enderlin First Responders.

“She spends her free time volunteering as a first responder in Enderlin and Lisbon. Now, this family needs help,” Owen, who set up the campaign, told KVLY.

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