by Amy DeMeritt
After a few moments, Erin pulls away with a sucking nip of Ashton’s bottom lip, and asks, “Are we still on for dinner tonight?”
“It’s a date. I hope the hip replacement on the dalmatian goes off without a hitch. Call me if you need to.”
“Thanks. I will. Be careful today if you get called out.”
“I always am. I love you.”
“I love you too.”
They share another kiss, then Erin slowly lowers her arms and catches Ashton’s hands. She squeezes them, then walks to the office door. “Talk to you later.”
The bell for a fire in progress goes off and as Ashton runs out from behind her desk, Erin runs out to the hall to get out of her way. Erin and Gloria jog after her, which isn’t easy for Gloria to do in her heels and form fitting skirt.
As they reach the garage, Ashton calls out, “What do we have?”
Marge, one of the emergency dispatchers comes over to her with a pad of paper. “Six story apartment building on Fifth and Stevenson’s Street. Out of control oven fire on the ground level near the main entrance.”
“Damn it.” Ashton starts screaming out orders to her crew to get two engines ready.
As Ashton starts putting on her uniform, Erin asks, “Do you need me? Should I call the clinic and have them push my appointments?”
“No, not unless the fire gets upgraded. Let Marge know you’re available if we need the extra help.” She grabs the back of her neck and gives her a quick kiss. “I’ll text you when I can. I love you.” She starts to jog to the first truck that has been confirmed ready to roll, but as she’s about to pass Gloria, she gives her a tight hug and kisses her cheek. “Sorry, babe, I gotta run. Be careful and good luck with your open house.”
“Damn it, Ashton.” She exhales hard as her eyes tear up. “Be careful.”
“I will. I love you.” She jumps onto the truck, and screams, “Let’s roll!”
When they arrive, police are already on the scene blocking off the building and keeping people back from trying to get inside, many of whom are screaming about needing to get their valuables or children or loved ones from inside. It only takes Ashton seconds to assess the immediate threat and give orders to her crew. The fire has spread from the right side to completely obstruct the entrance and is moving rapidly to the left side of the building, nearly filling the entire first level on the front half of the building.
A police officer runs over to Ashton, and says, “We have a situation. All of the windows on the first level have illegally installed no-release safety bars on the windows and a glitch in the security system has caused the emergency exit doors to lock. Every door in the stairwells are locked. No one can escape and they can’t leave their floors. We had the power company cut the power to see if that would release the magnetic locks, but it didn’t work. They’re all trapped. We don’t have tools to get inside.”
“Fuck.” She grabs the radio on her shoulder. “Dispatch, this is Lieutenant Hyland. Fifth and Stevenson’s has become a four-alarm fire. Notify the chief and dispatch Captain Hunt to the scene immediately. We have six floors on lockdown, no one can get in or out of their own level. We’re going to have to get creative.”
“Copy, Lieutenant.”
She turns back to the police officer, and says, “We’re going through a window on the second floor and we’ll start evacuating with ladders. You get someone here from the security company to override the lockdown, and if they can’t, you let me know right away.”
“Got it.”
He runs away, speaking into his radio, and Ashton turns to instruct the drivers to move the two trucks they have to get them as close to the sides of the building as possible and raise the ladders to second-floor windows. Till they receive reinforcements, Ashton only has ten firefighters at her disposal.
She sprints over to the police officer who appears to be in charge, saying, “Officer…”
“Shaffer. What can I do for you, Lieutenant?”
“I need to borrow at least two of your officers till more firefighters arrive. I need one stationed at the top of each ladder. I’m going to send in two firefighters on each side of the building on the second floor and they’re going to funnel people out to your officers to help them safely get down the ladder and off of the truck. I have four firefighters on hoses to control the burn till backup arrives. I’m going to take the last two from my crew to break in on the first level so we can evacuate. We need emergency medical units on site ASAP and the local trauma centers need to be put on notice to prepare for mass injuries.”
“Got it. Webber! Kline!” Two tall broad-shouldered officers run over. “Either of you afraid of heights.”
“No, Sir.”
“Good, you’re going up the ladders.”
Ashton gives them orders and they run off with their firefighter teams. She and her top two firefighters, Perez and Fields, get their air tanks and respirators on and grab an extra for the survivors inside. With large fire extinguishers in one hand and an axe in the other, they run along the left side of the building, which has the least fire damage still, and she checks how the bars were installed.
“Stand back.”
Once Perez and Fields are out of the way, she starts pounding at the brackets on the concrete with the back of her axe, breaking them off. It takes seven blows, then they’re able to break the window and climb into the dark empty bedroom.
“Help! Someone, help us!”
They rush through the unit, checking every room, then jog out to the main hall. To their right, the hallway is filled with fire and smoke, and to the left, the hall is filled with less smoke and a horde of people banging on the emergency exit trying to get out.
“Excuse me, folks, can I have your attention!”
They turn to look at Ashton and quickly start running towards her, screaming for them to help.
“We are going to get all of you out of here, but you need to stop running and calm down!” As if she just pulled their electrical cords, all of them stop in their tracks. “Good. I am Lieutenant Hyland, and this is firefighters Perez and Fields. Please follow them and they will help you get out safely. No pushing. No one will be left behind.”
Ashton counts them as they walk past her into the apartment they came out of – she counts thirteen. The last man in the line is holding a towel to a severe burn on his left arm. He looks dazed and emotional and he keeps shuffling on his feet while looking past Ashton at the blaze behind her.
“Sir, are you okay?”
“I tried… I tried… I couldn’t get in. She… I tried.”
“Sir, do you know if someone didn’t make it out of the fire? What unit number?”
“A13. I tried.”
“Okay, go on. You need medical treatment.”
Ashton looks at the number on the door she’s standing in front of and curses under her breath – A17. The numbers are ascending further into the safe zone. A13 is right on the edge of the worst of the blaze. She can’t even see the door from here through the fire and smoke.
A voice crackles over the radio, saying, “Lieutenant, this is Captain Hunt. I have four more trucks here and more on the way. We are actively evacuating the second floor. Give me a status on your position.”
“I counted thirteen evacuees on the first floor that we have already escorted from the building. There are several closed doors in the safe zone we need to check, but there may be people trapped in the burn zone. I need more backup in here to check the other rooms while I go into the fire.”
“I’m sending seven in right now.”
“Thank you, Sir. Where do we stand on the lockdown issue?”
“No luck. The security company said they can’t override the system remotely. They would need to get to the control panel, which is in the basement.”
“The basement will be inaccessible in less than twenty minutes, if this fire continues to spread the way it is.”
“Right, and they can’t get a technician to us that quickly, so we stick to you
r plan. I’m adding two more ladders now, so we should have the second floor evacuated very shortly.”
“Great. Thank you, Sir.”
“No, thank you. This was a great call on your part, Lieutenant. Stay safe in there. I’ll check in again soon.”
Fields and Perez walk out of the apartment with seven additional firefighters behind them.
“Lieutenant, where do you need us?”
“Perez and Fields, you’re with me. The rest of you, check every unit for survivors from this point back to the emergency exit. Once cleared, check in with me. The three of us are going to see how far into the blaze we can get. We have reason to believe at least one person is stuck in unit A13.”
They confirm they understand and branch off to start checking the remaining eighteen units of the thirty-five units on the first floor. Lieutenant Hyland, Fields, and Perez use their fire extinguishers to put out the fire underfoot and slowly creep forward into the blaze.
Ashton uses her axe to knock down the door of the first unit they get to, unit A16, and the doorway immediately fills with fire, but the room ahead looks relatively untouched. They put the fire out, then Ashton moves inside while having them stay behind.
She screams, “Is anyone in here?”, as loudly as she can to get above the sounds of the groaning structure and the pummeling water beating against nearby walls in other units. She searches the small pockets of unconsumed spaces, then goes back to the hallway, where Perez and Fields are working to keep the fire back from the doorway so she can get out.
“Next.”
After they clear the door to A15, Ashton walks inside alone. She only gets three steps and a portion of ceiling caves in, blocking the doorway.
“Perez! Fields! Are you okay?”
“Yes, we’re fine. Are you?”
“For now. Go into unit A17 and turn these units into a suite – make me a door! I’m going to break through to A13 and see if I can find that missing female.”
“We’re on it, Lieutenant!”
She finds a wall that should be shared with unit A13 and starts tearing it apart with her axe. As she fully breaks through, a plume of smoke and ash rushes into her room, making it nearly impossible to see. She uses her extinguisher to clear the edges of the wall and the floor enough that she can safely walk inside.
“Yes. I got you.”
She rushes forward and kneels next to the young woman lying on the floor in a fetal position. She pulls her glove off to press two fingers to the young woman’s neck, testing for a pulse. She smiles and immediately lifts her head to put a breathing mask over her nose and mouth. After she turns the air tank on, she begins checking the unconscious woman for injuries. She doesn’t find any signs of bruising or burns, indicating she most likely hasn’t been injured and only passed out from the smoke inhalation.
There is a broken waterpipe in the ceiling spraying water over the room and keeping the fire from consuming most of the floor, which has saved the girl’s life.
She grabs her radio, and says, “I located the girl. She’s alive but unconscious.” Only a crackling sound answers her back. “Perez?” A garbled answer comes back, but it’s indecipherable. Something is causing an interference. “If you can understand me, I have the girl and I’m coming back out through A15.”
Ashton looks towards the hole in the wall she created and curses – the wall is completely consumed and flames are rapidly filling her safest exit. She uses her fire extinguisher to lessen the flames, but she knows the fire will consume the raw exposed wood again very soon. She grabs an afghan off of a couch that hasn’t caught on fire yet and holds it up to the burst waterpipe to get it soaked. She then wraps the young woman in the blanket. After securing her axe to her belt, she lifts the young woman into her arms, and the young woman groans and slowly opens her eyes.
“Try to stay calm. I am Lieutenant Ashton Hyland and I’m going to get you out of here. Can you tell me your name and age?”
With a weak and smoky voice, she answers, “Skylar West. I’m twenty-two.”
“Nice to meet you, Skylar. Is there anyone else with you in this apartment?”
“No, I live alone.” She coughs and grabs the mask on her face as she takes a deep breath. “My neighbor – he tried to get me out. Did he die?”
“We rescued a man who mentioned your unit number. Once we get you outside, you can let us know if he’s the same man. Now, close your eyes.”
“Why?”
“Because we’re about to jump through that wall.”
Ashton nods towards the fiery wall, and as Skylar looks towards the smoky exit, she whimpers, “Oh, my god.” She squirms in Ashton’s arms, shaking her head, and while coughing, she pleads, “No, please. I don’t want to die.”
As sweetly as she can while her body is becoming fatigued and antsy from the encroaching very hot fire and the weight of her gear and the young woman, she tries to reassure her. “Shh, calm down so I don’t drop you. I’m not going to let you die. We’re going to get out of here. I know it’s scary, but we need to move. The ceiling can cave in at any second.”
Skylar looks towards the fiery hole and shakes her head, and cries, “Please. How do you know the floor is still there or something isn’t on the other side to hurt us? I can only see fire and smoke.”
“I just came through that hole and I haven’t heard anything collapse. I need you to please trust me. I will protect you with my life. I am going to get you out of here.”
Without waiting for any further objections, Ashton hoists the fire extinguisher with three curled fingers of the hand holding Skylar’s legs, and she rushes through the fire with Skylar whimpering against her chest.
As soon as they come through the ring of fire, Ashton has to skirt around a column of fire. While watching the fire dance around them, eating up the walls and furniture around them, she searches the unit for the doorway Fields and Perez were supposed to make for her. Just before she enters the bedroom, a portion of the ceiling caves in, blocking her out of the room.
“What was that loud noise?”
“Nothing. Don’t worry, we’re going to get you out of here. Just keep your eyes…” She looks down to see Skylar looking around wide-eyed. She looks through the flames and sees the opening in the wall. “Perez! Fields!”
“We’re here!”
“I have the girl in my arms, but there’s an obstruction to get to you.”
“We’re coming, Lieutenant.”
Just as they start to climb through the hole, more of the ceiling collapses with heavy furniture filling the room and blocking off the hole.
“Oh, my god. How are we going to get out of here?”
“I’m going to get us out. Don’t worry. I need to set you down for just a moment. Okay?”
Skylar nods with her eyes filling with tears. Ashton sets her extinguisher down, then looks around for a spot to set Skylar. Just as she starts to set her down in the doorway of the kitchen, she quickly scoops her back up and runs as the ceiling above them caves in. She leaps back through the hole leading to Skylar’s apartment and Skylar begins to weep in hopelessness.
“We’re going to die in here.”
“No, we’re not. I promise.” She grabs her radio, and says, “Perez, if you can hear me, I’m back in A13. This place is coming down. I have to find a new way out. You guys get the hell out of here.”
The radio crackles, but no words come through. Ashton looks around with her heart racing. The fire is completely surrounding them and she knows it’s only a matter of minutes, maybe only seconds before the center of the ceiling above them collapses completely or the fire is able to eat through the sodden floor under them.
The floor.
Ashton looks down and her heart leaps with optimism.
“Okay, I’m going to set you down now. I have a plan.”
She sets Skylar on the damp carpet wrapped in the wet afghan with water spraying over them and fire wildly dancing all around them. Walls, furniture, and the ceiling are aflame wi
th smoke and heat choking the space between, making it harder to see.
Ashton takes her air tank harness off, then takes her jacket off and offers it to Skylar as she kneels next to her. “Here, put this on.”
“But what about you?” Skylar shrugs the wet blanket off and puts the jacket on with her lips trembling and her eyes flooding with tears. “What are you going to do?”
“We’re going down. Now, stay right here on this wet carpet and only move if you think the ceiling is going to fall.”
“Okay. Please be careful.”
Ashton gives her a brave smile as she swings her air tank back over her shoulder and onto her back. With her axe in both hands, she walks several paces away from Skylar, closer to the edge of the fire. She taps the floor with the axe, listening closely for a hollow sound so she doesn’t try to cut through a support beam. She looks back at Skylar, then swings her axe down hard, causing the floor to vibrate with the impact. She tugs the axe free of the carpet and plywood floor, then plows it through again. She rips up the carpet and thin padding to give her better access to the wood beneath, then whacks at the floor over and over again, chipping away large chunks of plywood till she has created a hole barely wider than her body. She shines a flashlight down into the darkness and feels optimism surge in her chest. She rushes to Skylar’s side and helps her stand.
“We’re not too far above the basement floor. I’m going to lower you down. Once we’re down there, we’ll have a better chance of getting out of here.”
“Okay.”
Skylar is trembling in fear, but she is hopeful. The look in Ashton’s light gray eyes makes her feel safe, even though the building is falling apart around them. As they’re squatting down by the jagged hole, she leaps forward, taking Ashton by surprise, and gives her a very tight hug. Ashton wraps an arm around her to return the embrace, then pats her back. Skylar pulls away and carefully shimmies closer to the hole. Ashton drops her flashlight down to illuminate the space, then straddles the hole and takes Skylar’s hands.