Fire chief honored for saving woman trapped in burning home
Medina Fire Chief Larry Walters is being honored for taking part in the dramatic rescue of a woman trapped in a burning home last fall in York Township.
By Drew Scofield, Kaylee Olivas, Bob Jones
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Ohio (WEWS) — Medina Fire Chief Larry Walters is being honored for taking part in the dramatic rescue of a woman trapped in a burning home last fall in York Township.
On Oct. 23, 2024, Walter, Medina County Sheriff’s Office deputies, firefighters from Erhart, York, Medina and Chatham, as well as an off-duty firefighter from another county, responded after the woman called 911 and said she was trapped. Authorities stated that the 911 operator remained in contact with the woman while crews responded.
“[We] had located the victim in a basement window. I believe it was on the east side of the house. Most of the house was involved in a fire at that point, and they were trying to get her out. They were not able to pull her. The basement window was really small,” Medina Fire Chief Larry Walters said after the rescue.
Footage of the fire revealed officials were running out of options to pull the woman to safety.
Walters, in a quick-thinking decision, shed part of his gear and slid through the basement window feet first.
He estimated he was in the basement with her for three to four minutes.
“The smoke conditions continued to get worse by the moment. But I mostly focused on helping her get up high enough to where the rescuers on the outside could get a hold of her,” Walters said last fall. “I considered what I was doing to be the right thing. It certainly was not a situation where I felt like writing her off for the benefit of my safety was the right thing to do.”
Using a multi-purpose pry bar, Walters said the woman used it as a stepping stool. Officials were then able to pull her safely from the house, which was later deemed a total loss.
This month, Walters was honored with the Ohio Fire Service Valor Award.
“The heroic part, not so much, but I think it is good recognition for the county. I think it demonstrates the collaborative approach that the first responders, the departments, police, fire and EMS and dispatchers have,” Walters said about the award.
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