NEWBERRY — The City of Newberry firefighter who was injured while rescuing a citizen from their home during a fire at Indian Hills Apartments has now returned to duty, Fire Chief Keith Minick said.
On Tuesday, February 6 at approximately 12:48 a.m., the City of Newberry Fire Department responded to a call of a report of smoke in a kitchen at Indian Hills Apartments.
When crews arrived on scene they were advised that there may be someone in one of the apartments. Firefighters had to use forcible entry to gain access and perform the search and fire attack. One person was found in the apartment and rescued to safety by a city firefighter.
Preliminary investigation reveals a fire in the kitchen due to cooking, Minick said. The apartments did not have fire sprinklers due to the age of construction, but did have working smoke alarms that alerted the resident who initiated the 911 call.
Fire Chief Keith Minick said Newberry County EMS was on scene to treat the patient who was transported to Columbia. He has since been released from the hospital.
The American Red Cross was notified to assist with residents in two of the four apartments.
Minick said the department had just completed training on forcible entry and practiced rescuing a firefighter in a smoke-filled environment prior to the call.
“Reality is in our line of business and it is not often we are fortunate enough to pull people from burning homes that are safe,” Minick said. “It’s rewarding to know we were able to do that.”