BILLINGS – A Billings police officer rescued a woman and two young children Thursday morning after the family became trapped inside their burning house.
Sgt. Scott Conrad was a few blocks away when he heard a dispatch for a house fire on Rhea Lane at about 7:41 a.m., the department said in a press release.
Conrad immediately drove to the house and saw smoke coming from the residence and heard yelling from the back of the house.
A large dog in the backyard prevented Conrad from reaching the woman and the children who had taken shelter in a bathroom, so he kicked in the front door. A woman carrying an infant immediately ran to the front of the house as Conrad noticed flames in the kitchen and smoke throughout the house.
The officer then noticed a 2-year-old child by the bathroom and after yelling at the child to come out with no response, he entered the burning structure to grab the child who then ran toward him.
The woman later said the kitchen stove caught fire and she could not get out the front door so she took the children to the bathroom and opened a window for fresh air. The window was too small, however, for the woman to get out.
“The Billings Police Department is proud of Sergeant Conrad’s quick thinking and actions to help get everyone safely out of the residence,” the press release states.
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