Issue 71 - New Zealand Fire Service

fire-side
Children Saved
Watching five-year-old Reyna walk into the Paraparaumu fire station in June
was a highlight in the careers of Paraparaumu’s Blue Watch crew.
Three months earlier Reyna was
unconscious and not breathing
when they carried her out of her
burning home. For Senior Firefighter
Campbell Thomson, SFF Neil (Ollie) Olsen
and SFF Ian Allen, meeting her and her
older brother, seven-year-old Jordan,
was something special.
“It’s very rare for us to rescue someone
from a house that was this involved in
fire and for them to live,” said Ollie.
Reyna’s mother, Rosalie Ramirez, was also
rescued by Campbell and Ollie but died
while being taken to hospital.
the set uP
On 13 April at 12.31am the first 111 call
came through. Three minutes later
Campbell, Ollie, Ian and Station Officer
Gary Johnstone arrived at the house.
“We could see the glow in the sky and
then the smoke as we got near,” said Ian.
The call had come through from the
Comms Centre with the message that
people were reported to be inside.
On arrival, neighbours told them
children may still be inside. With the
house so well involved, Campbell
remembered thinking that anyone inside
could not possibly be alive.
Gary Johnstone did a quick 360° sweep
of the outside while Ian set up the pump.
Campbell and Ollie laid out a low pressure
delivery, donned and prepared to enter
the house.
Campbell said, “We went round the side
of the house to set up and a guy carrying
a child appeared through all the smoke.
There was blood everywhere. It was really
hot and Gary told us the back was still
intact and that’s where we could make
entry through a door.” The man they
met was a neighbour who had smashed
12 / Fire+Rescue / August 2011
a bedroom window and badly cut his arm
while dragging young Jordan to safety.
Ian was manning the pump. “Timing was
critical and it went like clockwork. As they
made the door the water was coming on
and as they went in the water was on.
Then the man carrying the little boy came
up to me – there was blood all over them,
dripping down on the road. It was a real
dilemma. I had to operate the pump and
keep the water going and here were two
people bleeding in front of me. I just had
to tell them to go and sit down by the
fence – I knew the ambulance and other
fire crews were coming.”
The smoke was
down to the ground
and the fire was
rolling across the
ceiling so we knew
we didn’t have
much time.
the resCue
Ollie said, “We were told there were two
people in the bedroom on the left which was
the priority for us. We got in and pushed the
fire back. Campbell searched the first room
while I held the fire back. The smoke was
down to the ground and the fire was rolling
across the ceiling so we knew we didn’t have
much time. While I was reaching back to get
more hose I saw the little girl face down
near the door to a second bedroom. I picked
her up and yelled out to Campbell.”
When he heard Ollie yell, Campbell’s first
thought was that the roof was coming
down. In 1998 both he and Ollie were
among five firefighters who were injured
when the rear section of a Wellington
house collapsed while they were inside
fighting a fire.
Campbell said, “He just put her straight
into my arms and I made my way back
outside. I came flying out and into a police
officer who took her and I went back in.”
By then Ollie had found the little girl’s
mother and was pulling her out of the
room. “Together we made our way out
the back door with her and handed her
over to other fire crews. Then it was
back in to stop the fire spreading.”
When other crews arrived to take on the
firefighting Ollie and Campbell handed over
and made their way out to the street to see
how the woman and children were doing.
“The mother and the little girl were both
being worked on and the woman was
going into cardiac arrest. We helped
with CPR for a while,” said Campbell.
looking BaCk
Both children were admitted to intensive
care for severe smoke inhalation but are
making a good recovery. They visited the
fire station with their father in June,
something the crew really appreciated.
They said it was clear the children’s father
was doing his best to limit the trauma by
talking to them about what had happened,
showing them photos and visiting the
people who had helped them on the night.
“For us it was just great. Seeing that
beautiful little girl alive and well was the
highlight of my career,” said Campbell.
The four firefighters have had time to
reflect on the rescue and agree that it
went like clockwork.
“Everyone knew their job and did it
perfectly,” said Campbell.