Firefighters save girl
Published 12:00 am Tuesday, December 28, 1999
Firefighters called to douse a house fire at a rental property at 401 Garfield Ave.
Tuesday, December 28, 1999
Firefighters called to douse a house fire at a rental property at 401 Garfield Ave. Monday night were able to rescue a young girl trapped in an upstairs bedroom.
Police officers responding to the call attempted to rescue the girl, but were forced back by a wall of smoke that obscured the stairwell to her room, said police Lt. Tim Matson. While the fire was not yet serious, the thick smoke was life-threatening, police said.
Firefighters arrived a minute after the officers, cleared a path through the smoke and locating the girl.
Terissa Sue Cotton, 7, was pulled from the smoke-filled home by firefighters. She was treated at Albert Lea Medical Center, and then transferred to the Hennepin County burn center. The girl was reported in stable condition at the time of transfer.
Matson said a family lived on the main floor, and a single woman resided in the downstairs apartment.
Members of the family were home at the time and were able to escape the house, but the girl remained trapped until firefighters arrived, Matson said.
&uot;We were very fortunate, to have the fire department we do,&uot; Matson said. &uot;They saved that little girl’s life.&uot;
A city fire inspector was on the scene to interview family members, but the cause of the fire had not yet been determined.