Franklin Cove Apartments are pictured in November 2021.
Daily Journal file photo
If not for the quick actions of Franklin police officers, an apartment fire could have turned deadly.
At 11:51 p.m. Monday, a structure fire was reported at a unit in Franklin Cove Apartments. A neighbor reported that curtains in the apartment were on fire and smoke was coming from under the door, a Franklin police report says.
Officer Corey Hamilton was just a few blocks away at the former Burger King on Paris Drive when the call came in, so he arrived first at the scene. With a fire extinguisher in hand, he spoke to the neighbor who made the call and found out the man was still inside the apartment, the report says.
There was added danger to entering because the man is on oxygen, which is highly flammable.
Hamilton tried the apartment door and got no answer. He ran around to the patio door and got no answer again, so he kicked at the door until it opened, the report says.
A wave of heat from the fire and heavy, black smoke emanated from the door as he gained entry. At the same time, Officer Kirby Cochran, Jr. also arrived at the scene and the two went inside together to find the man, the report says.
The officers saw the couch was on fire and extinguished it. When the smoke cleared, they saw the man laying on the floor in front of the couch with clear burn injuries. They then grabbed him by the legs and pulled him out of the apartment, the report says.
He was checked at the scene and transported to Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Hospital in Indianapolis. His injuries were still being assessed on Tuesday morning, said Matt Culp, Franklin fire chief.
Firefighters arrived to find the man had already been rescued. They went inside to rescue his dogs and finish extinguishing the fire, which was out in just a few more minutes. The fire was contained to the living room of the apartment and didn’t reach other units, Culp said.
The fire appears accidental but is still under investigation by Franklin Fire Department and the Indiana State Fire Marshal because it involves a personal injury, Culp said.
Culp thanked the officers for their quick assistance. Police Chief Kirby Cochran, Sr. and Deputy Chief Scott Summers said they are proud the officers stepped up to help.
“He very likely he would have perished if they hadn’t acted,” Summers said. “We are very proud of them.”
The Amity Volunteer Fire Department and Bargersville medics also responded to the scene, Culp said.
