Unable to find working hydrants, Detroit firefighters dashed through heavy smoke and extreme heat to rescue a lifeless 10-month-girl from her upstairs bedroom early Saturday morning, Steve Neavling reports on Motor City Muckraker.
Firefighters rushed the unconscious girl from the burning east-side home at 1 a.m. and handed her to an awaiting paramedic, but she couldn't be resuscitated. She died before arriving at St. John Hospital, the fire department confirmed this morning.
As family members watched, sobbing and wearing nothing more than T-shirts and socks, firefighters were unable to find a working, non-frozen hydrant. By the time one was found a few blocks away, about 15 minutes had passed, and the house on Promenade, just east of the Coleman A. Young International Airport, was destroyed.
It's the latest incident casting a spotlight on the cash-strapped department.
Last week, an elderly man with disabilities died when he was unable to escape smoke and flames from his bedroom. The two closest fire stations were closed because of budget cuts, so it took the fire department nearly 10 minutes to respond. Last Sunday morning, during a busy period for the DFD, the first rig on the scene of a house fire near 8 Mile and the Southfield Freeway came from 17 miles away in southwest Detroit and took 22 minutes to arrive. The fire destroyed the home of an 85-year-old woman.
