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Young Bogota police officers, neighbors rescue woman from burning home

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: A rookie police officer one week out of the academy, along with one on the force only a year, helped neighbors rescue a 65-year-old Bogota woman from her burning house last night.

Photo Credit: Cliffview Pilot File Photo

The call from Elm Street came in just before 11 p.m.

“A trio of police officers arrived to find flames coming from the house and a woman calling for help from a second-floor window,” Police Chief John Burke told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.

A neighbor brought a ladder and another helped her down, with assistance from rookie Officer Kevin Gerahty (top, left) and colleagues Hector Liriano and Ryan Ward.

They “were tending to her medical needs when additional EMS arrived,” the chief said.

The woman was taken to Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck.

The house had heavy fire that extended to an unattached garage, but the Bogota Fire Department quickly knocked down the flames, with help from Hackensack and Ridgefield Park firefighters.

“They did an amazing job of containing the fire and extinguishing it,” Burke added.

Bogota’s EMS and Rescue Squads were on scene and treated and transported the resident. The chief said it appeared she would  be fine.

“The weather conditions didn’t make thing easy, with the cold and wind causing icy conditions,” he said. “But our DPW responded, as well, and helped clear the area by salting the frozen water.”

It was one of three house fires Bergen-area emergency workers had to deal with in the span of just a few hours last night. SEE: House blazes test firefighters in Mahwah, Bogota, Hasbrouck Heights

Borough fire officials hadn’t determined a cause, although they suggested a possible electrical problem.

 



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