Officer's Body Cam Captures Moment Little Boy Jumps from Flames into His Arms
On Dec. 10, a fire broke out in an apartment in Balch Springs, Texas. Keisha and Kingston Sowels were trapped in the unit above and their door was on fire.
The fire department was on its way, but the police officers who were on scene refused to waste precious minutes because they knew what waiting could mean for the boy and his mom.
“A family was stuck behind a door that was on fire, you know, there was no thinking,” Officer Corey Jones said. “It was, ‘what can we do to get that family out right now?'”
“Scared to death because you know what fire does and how fast it moves,” Officer David Fields said, according to WFAA.
The mother was attempting to break the window by kicking it, but she was unsuccessful. Cops tried to enter through the front door, but the smoke was too thick and they had to turn back.
After assessing the situation, the policemen instructed them to back away from the window they were standing at. One of the cops hurled his baton at the glass, breaking it.
Then they called to the boy and told him to jump. The 8-year-old managed to make the leap into the arms of the three officers waiting below.
“You okay? Your mom’s coming,” Officer Jones told the boy, according to WFTX-TV. “Alright, we’re good, buddy. Hey, that was a good jump, man. That was a good jump.”
After helping the boy, they assured him that his mother would be okay. The fire department arrived and a ladder was used to rescue her from the burning building, even though she was ready to jump, too.
They don’t see anything extraordinary about their efforts, though. Acting quickly just seemed like the best, most logical thing to do, so they did it.
“It’s what I believe any officer in this department would do. Not wait for Fire, not wait for anyone else,” Officer Jones said. “We’re going to do what we can to help anyone that we can.”
“He was just scared. I think anybody would be with flames behind them and a jump before them,” he continued. “He knew that we were down there, and we’re going to catch him. He didn’t think twice and jumped out the window.”
Keisha Sowels was incredibly grateful for everyone’s help.
“I just think God that they took the time to do what they were called to do as officers and firefighters,” she said. “I really appreciate it. I am totally grateful.”
“I thank you very much! Thank you very much. Y’all are definitely angels in my eyes, and I really appreciate it and I am grateful for the rest of my life.”
But for many brave men and women, it’s just another day on the job.
“We got this job for one thing only, and that’s to help people,” Officer Gross said during a media conference. “I just thank God every day that we’re able to do this job at this point time and we were there to help these people.”
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