CENTENNIAL, Colo. — Body camera video captured the heroic moments when two Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office (ACSO) deputies jumped into action and rescued two juveniles from the backyard of a burning home in Centennial.
The sheriff's office and South Metro Fire Rescue (SMFR) firefighters were called out to a report of a house fire in the 4800 block of S. Gibraltar Lane in Centennial around noon Sunday. Deputies Ryan McConnell and Chris Calderon were the first to arrive at the scene.
“There was tons of black smoke coming from inside the house. So initially, I mean, when you see it, it's hard to believe anyone could survive that. And fortunately, we were able to hear the kids in the backyard,” Deputy Calderon told Denver7.
Calderon said the children, ages 8 and 14, were screaming for help. The two deputies struggled to get to the juveniles due to the number of items that the homeowners had on either side of the house.
“It was very hard to breathe and we were so close to the house and the flames were getting increasingly bigger. So that was the main priority — getting the kids out of there so they didn't suffer any smoke inhalation or get pretty sick,” Calderon said.
The deputies went through a neighbor's yard and tore down part of the wood fence with their hands to free the children, who weren’t wearing shoes or coats. The kids made their way to the deputies and were carried to safety.
Watch the heroic rescue in the video player below:
Thankfully, the children were not injured. They were treated at the scene by paramedics.
Calderon and McConnell suffered smoke inhalation and were also treated at the scene by paramedics.
Calderon said while it’s not unusual for deputies to respond to a fire, they usually never have to do the job of firefighters.
“I always tell a bunch of my firefighter buddies that they are my heroes because they do the job that I wouldn't want to do,” he said.
SMFR said all occupants were able to escape the house fire a dog and five cats remain unaccounted for.
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