WOMAN SAVED FROM BLAZE 2 COPS PULL VICTIM FROM FIERY HOME.Byline: Jason Kandel Staff Writer BURBANK - Police Sgt. Jay Hawver was drinking iced tea at the Coral Cafe at 12:30 a.m. Tuesday when he got a radio call - a house fire in the 400 block of North Griffith Park Griffith Park is a large public park at the eastern end of the Santa Monica Mountains. It is situated in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. The park covers 4,210 acres (17 km²) of land, making it one of the largest urban parks in North America. Drive, elderly woman possibly inside. Among the first at the scene, Hawver braved thick smoke and searing sear 1 v. seared, sear·ing, sears v.tr. 1. To char, scorch, or burn the surface of with or as if with a hot instrument. See Synonyms at burn1. 2. flames to pull 91-year-old May Fox out of her home, which caught fire after a still-smoldering cigarette was tossed in a wicker trash basket. After police helped Fox to safety, paramedics rushed her to Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center is a hospital in Burbank, California, USA. The hospital has 455 beds, and is part of Providence Health & Services. It's adress is: 501 S. Buena Vista St., Burbank, CA 91505. , where she was listed in critical condition in the intensive care unit. Even though Fox's fate was uncertain, officers and firefighters praised Hawver and four of his colleagues for their valiant VALIANT Valsartan in Acute Myocardial Infarction Trial Cardiology A series of multinational M&M trials to determine the effects of valsartan–Diovan® attempt to save her life. ``The officers did an outstanding job,'' said Burbank police Sgt. Jay Jette. ``They worked as a team to do what needed to be done. They went above and beyond.'' Burbank Fire Department Capt. Bob Reinhardt echoed the sentiments. ``They acted in a very heroic manner,'' he said. ``We're very proud of them.'' Hawver deflected de·flect intr. & tr.v. de·flect·ed, de·flect·ing, de·flects To turn aside or cause to turn aside; bend or deviate. [Latin d the praise, saying, ``It really is part of the job. That's what we're here for.'' Fire officials said the blaze started in the trash basket, where Fox's live-in caretaker had thrown out her cigarette before falling asleep. She woke up to flames and smoke and alerted neighbors, who called 911. Police were the first to arrive and quickly pulled Fox out of the home. Hawver suffered a cut on his hand while climbing through a broken window to save her. ``I couldn't see anything, the smoke was so thick,'' said Hawver, a 12- year department veteran. ``The heat was very intense. When I first got in, I stumbled over a chair or a table, and was calling out for the lady, 'Are you here? Is anybody in here?' I didn't know her name.'' He said he heard coughing and moaning moan n. 1. a. A low, sustained, mournful cry, usually indicative of sorrow or pain. b. A similar sound: the eerie moan of the night wind. 2. Lamentation. v. in the room and started feeling around. ``I could feel a person. I could feel the leg,'' he said. ``I took ahold a·hold n. Hold; grip: "I knew I could make it all right if I got . . . back to the hotel and got ahold of that bottle of brandy" Jimmy Breslin. of her and picked her up off the bed and then turned back toward where I knew the window was at.'' By that time, another officer, Jennifer Downs, was inside the room. She and Hawver lifted Fox out of her bedroom through the window and into the arms of other officers outside. They sat her on the lawn to give her mouth-to-mouth resuscitation mouth-to-mouth resuscitation n. A technique used to resuscitate a person who has stopped breathing, in which the rescuer presses his or her mouth against that of the victim and, allowing for passive exhalation, forces air into the lungs every few before paramedics took her to the hospital. While she was fighting for her life, neighbors reacted with shock about their beloved friend, who they said loves gossip, ballroom dancing and singing along with her TV. ``It's an empty hole in the pit of my stomach,'' said Flo Johnson, 66, a friend for 45 years. ``She was a great lady. She was a fun lady. Everybody loved her. ... She was a good neighbor. She was a good friend.'' Helen Gregos, 83, a retired nurse, used to give Fox her medication before she had round-the-clock caretakers. ``We've been friends a long time,'' said Gregos, who has been praying that Fox recovers from her ordeal ordeal, ancient legal custom whereby an accused person was required to perform a test, the outcome of which decided the person's guilt or innocence. By an ordeal, appeal was made to divine authority to decide the guilt or innocence of one accused of a crime or to . ``She knew all the news that was going on in the neighborhood: who was visiting who, which car pulled into my driveway and who was sleeping with who. What she didn't see, she manufactured. ``She's very resilient See resiliency. . I expect her to come out of this.'' Jason Kandel, (818) 546-3306 jason.kandel(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Police Sgt. Jay Hawver, with ripped pants and clutching a cut hand, watches as paramedics revive May Fox, 91, whom Hawver and another officer rescued from her burning home. Mike Meadows/Special to the Daily News |
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