EXETER TWP., Pa. – Newly released body camera video shows the moment Exeter Township firefighters pull a man out of a burning home.
Smoke fills the space as crews move fast, doing everything they can to get him out alive.
It happened last Thursday on Claire Drive in Exeter Township.
“Once they discovered that there was somebody in the house, one of our deputy chiefs went into immediate action and went through a first-floor window,” said Fire Chief Chris Jordan.
That deputy chief, Brian Rhein, ran straight into the smoke.
“I removed my air mask to give to the gentleman that was inside because I knew with that he was going to have a fighting chance,” Rhein said.
Inside, conditions were getting worse.
“He held my hand the whole time, and he’s like, ‘I’m going to die in here.’ I said, ‘You’re not going to die. That’s not an option today. We’re going to get you out of here,’” Rhein said.
More crews arrived, jumping in and working together.
Members of the Exeter Township Fire Department who worked together to save a man from a burning house.
WFMZ-TV | Lane Senkow
“With the resources we had at the time, there wasn’t much to do, so we did what we could to cover him, and when the rescue engine arrived, those guys got out and we were able to slowly but surely inch him up the window,” said firefighter John Frantz.
The man survived. Deputy Chief Rhein was taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation.
“Before I left the hospital, I asked the doctors if I could meet and see him before I left, so that was a very good feeling. I felt even better knowing that he was still alive, and he was going to make it through his fight,” Rhein said.
Firefighters were back at the station Tuesday, training for the next call.
“They were aggressive, they were fast. They knew what needed to be done, and they took aggressive action to make sure that it got done, and I’m very proud of what they did,” Jordan said.