Derby officers’ race against flames as they evacuate burning apartment building
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Derby, CT - Two Derby police patrolmen are being recognized for going above and beyond to protect their community.
On Oct. 23, patrolmen Jonathan Tirado and Ty Netto jumped into action, running toward and entering a burning building on Derby Avenue, evacuating people inside their apartments.
"They saw the fire, they immediately went in," Derby Police Chief Brian Grogan explained. "It's a call to action. They saw what was going on and went in there to save lives."
Tirado's body camera recorded their heroic actions. The pair made sure everyone got out safely, including a woman Tirado carried up a set of stairs.
"I'm proud, he's a great officer. He's done a lot of things in the last month. He had another substantial incident that saved another person's life. Both of them are great officers, very driven," Grogan added.
Though the patrolmen are being hailed for their heroic actions that day, they were doing what they do every day — which is to serve and protect their community.
"We signed up to go after, get the bad guys, to go into a fire and save people's lives knowing that there is no recognition with it," Grogan said. "It's more of something that you have to have internally to drive you."
"That's what the Derby Police Department does. They show up every day too, and they go on every call, and they answer every call like it's an emergency and they handle it professionally. We are very proud of them," Derby Mayor Joseph DiMartino said.
One firefighter suffered a minor injury from the fire, and no other injuries were reported.
"Think their heroics were unbelievable. They didn't think of themselves first, they thought of the people that were in that building and getting them out," Mayor DiMartino said.
Both patrolmen will be honored for their heroic actions at an awards ceremony.