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LANHAM, Md.--Just after 3:00 AM, Tuesday, April 3, 2007, Prince George's County Firefighters and Paramedics from the Lanham area were alerted to a possible house fire with occupants trapped.
A 911 call was received at the Public Safety Communications Center (PSC) in Capitol Heights from a resident of a house in the 7500 Block of Vanessa Court in Lanham.
The caller advised the call-taker that there was smoke in her house and she could not get out of the bedroom. As firefighters and paramedics were being dispatched, the call-taker remained on the line with one of the trapped occupants.
Critical information as to their location within the house was entered and relayed to the Fire/EMS Department Dispatcher by way of the computer aided dispatch system.
The dispatcher then relayed the information over the two-way radio system. Firefighters arrived quickly at the 2-story single family home with smoke coming from the structure.
Immediately upon their arrival, a simultaneous aggressive interior attack on the fire was initiated, a coordinated search and rescue for the trapped occupants, as well as ventilation of the smoke and heat that had built up inside the structure.
Based on the information obtained from the dispatchers, Fire Fighter Anthony "TJ" Anastasi, riding on-board Tower 7, from the Riverdale Volunteer Fire Department, Firefighter John "Jack" Lescure, crew member from Truck 28, West Lanham Hills Volunteer Fire Department, searched the downstairs area through moderate smoke conditions.
The tandem of rescuers located a 2 month old female child and her 24 year old mother in a bedroom and initiated removal from the house.
Firefighter Anastasi, a 4-year member of the Riverdale Fire/EMS Station 7, passed the infant to Firefighter Mike McGinn, West Lanham Hills Volunteer Fire Department 28, awaiting outside that then ran the lethargic infant over to paramedics.
An additional rescue of a teen-aged female was effected by Lieutenant Amir "FEZ" Sarraf, also a crew member from Truck 28.
This female was located in an upstairs bedroom and was eventually transported to an area hospital for treatment of minor smoke inhalation. The fire was quickly knocked down and limited to the kitchen with a small amount of vertical extension.
The fire was caused by "unattended cooking" and fire loss was estimated at $10,000. The mother and infant rescued by firefighters were evaluated on the scene by paramedics and did not require transportation to a hospital.
Prince George's County Fire Chief Lawrence H. Sedgwick, Jr. stated, "A well-executed and swift transfer of information from call taker to dispatcher to responding firefighters certainly played a key role in the successful rescue, without injury, of the two trapped occupants, in addition to the successful outcome of the entire incident."
