Two Johnstown police officers are being hailed as heroes for rescuing a woman from a burning home late Sunday night.
Police have released body camera footage of the rescue, which shows Officer Jared Lefevre responding to a house fire, along the 900 block of Steel Street, in Old Conemaugh Borough.
According to the police department, Officer Lefevre was on patrol, just before 11 p.m. Sunday, when he reportedly noticed heavy smoke coming from the home.
Police say Officer Lefevre also noticed that there was a light coming from the second floor, and believed that the home was occupied.
Body cam footage shows Officer Lefevre breaking down the front door, after receiving no answer from the resident.
Police say that while emergency crews were en route to the home, Officer Lefevre then heard a female resident respond and state that she could not walk.
Investigators say Officer Lefevre then made contact with the woman, who was the sole occupant of the home.
Police say the woman was reportedly immobile and seated in a chair.
According to the department, Officer Lefevre, along with Officer Eric Allen, who had also responded to the scene, assisted in carrying the woman out of a second-floor doorway and to the backyard area of the residence.
Emergency officials say the woman was then taken to Conemaugh Hospital for treatment. Her current condition is unknown at this time.
On Monday, we spoke with Johnstown Police Deputy Chief Mark Britton, who says that the officers did an incredible job in saving the woman and adds that he is lucky to have them serving on the JPD force.
“To go into a burning building, technically you look at it It’s not our job, but it is our job. We’re public servants. We helped and these two officers didn’t even think twice about going into that house and pulling that woman out of that house. Not only on the first floor, but on the second floor of that structure, where the fire was, and they did everything they could to get that woman out. I am just very thankful that the Johnstown Police Department has officers like Lafevre and Allen, who go above and beyond what our scope of our job is, and I’m extremely, extremely proud of the job that they did.”
Cambria County dispatchers note that multiple area crews, including Johnstown Fire Department, as well as West Hills and 7th Ward EMS, were on scene for several hours.
Authorities say the cause of the blaze is under investigation and no other injuries were reported.