Saving Life & Property

In the early morning of December 26th, the peaceful sleep of the Jim Reh family in Wildwood, MO wouldn't continue through the night, but their lives would.  A lit candle in the dining room, forgotten from the holiday festivities the evening before, slowly burned down until the melted liquid of the candle and burning wick dropped on to the buffet.  Flames quickly rose, spreading across the buffet's top surface, while the smoke triggered the smoke detectors which were connected to the family's monitored alarm system.

An ABF dispatcher, Jackie Bilpush, received the fire alarm signal in the central station and made an immediate call to the Reh family home.  When the dispatcher was not able to reach anyone at home, the next call was urgently made to dispatch the fire department.  The family's cell phones were then called, but an answering machine responded. 

While the dispatcher continued to make additional notification calls, the fire department made its way to the home.  Upon its arrival, a firefighter noted that the fire was spreading up the walls.  The family, who was at home and had so far managed to sleep soundly through the alarm siren and the ringing of the telephone, were finally awakened by the sound of their front door crashing apart as firemen forced their way in.

In the end, only one family member was taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation but released shortly afterwards.  The fire was confined to just the one room, so while there was some loss to the family's possessions the losses were minimal.

CSAA Dispatch, Spring 2007