A firefighter who’s only been on the job for a few months in D.C. ran through a burning home to saved a trapped, bed-ridden 84-year-old resident. News4’s Mark Segraves was there when the heroic rookie met with the victim’s son.
A 19-year-old D.C. firefighter rookie is being credited with saving an elderly woman's life in the same neighborhood he grew up in.
Amir Johnson had lived in Northeast his entire life, and after graduating from high school, he immediately joined the D.C. Fire Department.
Just eight months into his career as a firefighter, Johnson was called to a large fire early Sunday morning on Blaine Street NE, where he found 84-year-old Nelie Jones in a bedroom.
"I could see the fire rolling on the ceiling. I made my way down the hallway to the right. There were about three bedrooms. I scooped her up off the bed, and started back down the hallway. I couldn't see anything. It was hot and smoky," Johnson said.
Thursday, Johnson met Jones' son Antonio.
"I can't thank you enough," Antonio Jones told Johnson. "Thank you for saving my mom."
Johnson said meeting Antonio and hearing that his mother was doing well was a burden lifted off his shoulders.
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"I thought about her every day after that moment, just wondering how she was doing," Johnson said.
Nelie has been released from the hospital and is living in Red Cross housing until she moves in with family out of town.
"Without his efforts, she wouldn't have made it out of the house. The smoke was really intense," Antonio Jones said.
"It's probably my second big fire, but I never had to carry someone out of a fire before," Johnson said. "It was an eye-opening, humbling experience."
