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Jamie Sheetz says he's no hero.
"I'm just a hillbilly," Sheetz said Monday night, standing outside a mobile home in rural Fulton Township. "I did what a man's supposed to do."
After Sheetz saved the life of a 3-year-old child Monday morning, many might disagree.
Awakened by his barking dogs about 2 a.m., Sheetz looked out his window to see a neighbor's mobile home engulfed in flames.
The 40-year-old man, dressed only in shorts, sprinted out of his home, smashed through a window of the burning home, grabbed the child from his bedroom and carried him back out the window to safety.
Fire officials say Sheetz likely saved the life of Josh Jennings Jr. The boy was moments away from being overcome by smoke and flames.
"It was very close," Robert Fulton Deputy Fire Chief Rob Sample said. "They were basically being forced out by the fire. It was, literally, seconds."
Jennings was in stable condition Monday night at Crozer-Chester Medical Center. He inhaled a lot of smoke and suffered burns but is expected to survive, according to relatives.
Sheetz's arms, legs and stomach were burned, and his hair was singed during the rescue. He declined to be treated at a hospital.
The boy was staying the night with his great-grandparents, David and Vernetta Irwin, at the mobile home at 324 Arcadia Trace Road. The boy, the son of Joshua A. Jennings and Tara Eckman, lives in a nearby mobile home.
The Irwins were helped out of the burning home by other neighbors. David Irwin was treated at Lancaster General Hospital for smoke inhalation and released. Vernetta Irwin was treated at the scene. The Irwins' puppy, part black Labrador and part Dalmatian, perished in the fire.
The structure and everything inside was destroyed everything except the family's Bible.
"The Bible didn't burn," Sheetz said, "some crispy edges, but it didn't burn."
Sheetz credits his two dogs for noticing the fire and waking him up.
After glancing out his window and seeing the flames, Sheetz said he acted without thinking.
"I broke the back window out, went in and got the boy," Sheetz said.
Jennings was on his bed crying when Sheetz came to his rescue inside the smoke-filled room.
"I could barely see him, but I could see his blond hair," Sheetz said.
As Sheetz carried the boy out, "the whole room went up," he said. "Five seconds, I was in and out."
An accidental fire that started near a wood stove quickly spread throughout the 12-by-65-foot home, fire officials said.
Sample said the fire was already taking its toll on the boy.
"If you are breathing in smoke, and especially with burns, you (better be) seconds from getting out of there," the deputy chief said.
Jennings was first transported to Lancaster General Hospital before being transferred to Crozer's burn unit later in the day.
The Irwins' mobile home is a total loss. Damage to the structure and its contents lost was estimated at $30,000, according to fire officials.
There were no smoke detectors inside the home, officials said.
"You can replace that," Sheetz said, pointing to the pile of rubble that was the Irwins' home for 35 years. "It could have been death."
________________________________
This guy needs a PSK with a prybar sewed to his underpants.
Not a hero? My butt!
TF
Jamie Sheetz says he's no hero.
"I'm just a hillbilly," Sheetz said Monday night, standing outside a mobile home in rural Fulton Township. "I did what a man's supposed to do."
After Sheetz saved the life of a 3-year-old child Monday morning, many might disagree.
Awakened by his barking dogs about 2 a.m., Sheetz looked out his window to see a neighbor's mobile home engulfed in flames.
The 40-year-old man, dressed only in shorts, sprinted out of his home, smashed through a window of the burning home, grabbed the child from his bedroom and carried him back out the window to safety.
Fire officials say Sheetz likely saved the life of Josh Jennings Jr. The boy was moments away from being overcome by smoke and flames.
"It was very close," Robert Fulton Deputy Fire Chief Rob Sample said. "They were basically being forced out by the fire. It was, literally, seconds."
Jennings was in stable condition Monday night at Crozer-Chester Medical Center. He inhaled a lot of smoke and suffered burns but is expected to survive, according to relatives.
Sheetz's arms, legs and stomach were burned, and his hair was singed during the rescue. He declined to be treated at a hospital.
The boy was staying the night with his great-grandparents, David and Vernetta Irwin, at the mobile home at 324 Arcadia Trace Road. The boy, the son of Joshua A. Jennings and Tara Eckman, lives in a nearby mobile home.
The Irwins were helped out of the burning home by other neighbors. David Irwin was treated at Lancaster General Hospital for smoke inhalation and released. Vernetta Irwin was treated at the scene. The Irwins' puppy, part black Labrador and part Dalmatian, perished in the fire.
The structure and everything inside was destroyed everything except the family's Bible.
"The Bible didn't burn," Sheetz said, "some crispy edges, but it didn't burn."
Sheetz credits his two dogs for noticing the fire and waking him up.
After glancing out his window and seeing the flames, Sheetz said he acted without thinking.
"I broke the back window out, went in and got the boy," Sheetz said.
Jennings was on his bed crying when Sheetz came to his rescue inside the smoke-filled room.
"I could barely see him, but I could see his blond hair," Sheetz said.
As Sheetz carried the boy out, "the whole room went up," he said. "Five seconds, I was in and out."
An accidental fire that started near a wood stove quickly spread throughout the 12-by-65-foot home, fire officials said.
Sample said the fire was already taking its toll on the boy.
"If you are breathing in smoke, and especially with burns, you (better be) seconds from getting out of there," the deputy chief said.
Jennings was first transported to Lancaster General Hospital before being transferred to Crozer's burn unit later in the day.
The Irwins' mobile home is a total loss. Damage to the structure and its contents lost was estimated at $30,000, according to fire officials.
There were no smoke detectors inside the home, officials said.
"You can replace that," Sheetz said, pointing to the pile of rubble that was the Irwins' home for 35 years. "It could have been death."
________________________________
This guy needs a PSK with a prybar sewed to his underpants.
Not a hero? My butt!
TF
Rick
