Bodycam Shows Rescue Of Wheelchair-Bound Woman In 3-Alarm Fire
By: -----
Edison, NJ - Police and firefighters responded to the blaze at the Marina Drive apartment complex around 11:13 p.m. On Wednesday, May 20 and found multiple residents trapped inside the building.
Video shared by Mayor Sam Joshi shows officers kicking out a second-floor window as smoke poured from the building and first responders rushed to rescue residents.
One woman in a wheelchair was pulled from a third-floor window.
“She can’t walk at all,” one officer can be heard saying in the footage. “Let’s put her on a sheet, and we’ll just slide her down.”
The woman was taken to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital for smoke inhalation. She has since been released and is doing well, officials said.
Officers and firefighters immediately deployed truck and ground ladders, rescuing approximately 10 to 12 people from the fire, according to authorities.
“This is what protecting your community looks like,” Joshi wrote while sharing the footage. “Our first responders performed with extraordinary heroism and bravery under pressure. We are grateful to all of our crews who saved lives last night.”
The fire left 20 apartments uninhabitable, temporarily displacing residents, officials said. The Red Cross and Edison Office of Emergency Management are assisting affected families with temporary accommodations.
“Our first responders performed with extraordinary professionalism and bravery under pressure,” officials said. “Their training showed last night, and their heroism should not go unnoticed.”
The video ends with one exhausted officer joking after the rescue: “This wasn’t on my bingo card for today.”