Residents of a West Peoria apartment building joined with deputies to catch two children from a roaring blaze.
Noticing the frantic trapped people, a resident grabbed a bedsheet, 25News reported.
Neighbors, along with police officers, held the sheet and yelled for a man to drop the child, promising to catch her.
Eventually, they did just that. And, they made a second catch as well. The two suffered minor injuries from the fire.
West Peoria Fire Chief Terry Schadt said he was proud of the teamwork. If they had not sprung into action, the consequences would have been tragic.
Firefighters rescued other family members by ladders.
There was a lack of water pressure during the initial moments of fighting the fire, the chief said, adding that mains weren't large enough to supply the five-inch hoses.
“It’s kind of sucking the hydrant dry. We can’t get enough water. It’s kind of hard to get the right amount of water we need with the right amount of pressure.”
Crews, however, adapted by using other hydrants. They also utilized apparatus from other departments as well.
Peoria County Sheriff Chris Watkins said after releasing the body cam: “This is such a great example of our first responders working with citizens in our community to save lives. As you can see and hear in the body-worn camera footage, this was a very intense situation. I am proud of everyone involved and thoughts and prayers for the families affected by this fire."
