A group of Georgia firefighters — as well as the babies they saved — have a story for the ages, as the former literally caught the latter, during an apartment complex blaze that displaced over 80 residents.
Captain Jackie Peckrul and Captain Scott Stroup each caught a child that was dropped over two stories off of a ladder by their father — Lance Ragland — in an attempt to save all eight of his kids from the burning Avondale Forest Apartments in DeKalb County, Georgia.
Videos by PopCulture.com
“We were catching babies like footballs,” Captain Eric Jackson told local reporters. “There were adults that were on the balcony that were dropping their babies right into our arms.
“We had a couple firefighters catching babies, so it was just really incredible.”
Reports indicate that over a dozen people were injured in the fire, though none of the children were among those cited by local media.
Peckrul, a 14-year veteran of the force and a mother of triplets, was one of the first responders on the scene, and came away with a lasting memory, albeit with the anxiety that came with making the crucial catch.
“That was the only thing running through my mind,” she said. “‘Lord let me catch this baby.’”
“My hands came off the ladder and I got ’em. There is no better feeling in the world. We never want to see a parent lose a child.”
The video was posted on social media on Sunday by the firefighters’ union in DeKalb County. The images — which could be traumatic to some viewers — show Stroup catching the young child, which was dropped from the third story balcony.
Stroup then carried the child away from the burning building as he collapses to his knees.
Assistant Chief Jeff Crump was seen running into the building and then returning with a woman in a wheelchair, as well.
Members of the community have rallied around the fire department, hailing the group as “superheroes,” but most all have declined the praise, passing it off as humbly doing their job.
Ragland, and his children, will likely disagree.
