Two Irwin police officers and two Irwin firefighters were given commendations Wednesday by borough officials for rescuing a 63-year-old man who was burned in a fire in his apartment in downtown Irwin last month.
Irwin patrolmen Adam Painter and Daniel Wensel and firefighters Scott Urias and R.J. Swenson, were given letters of commendation from Mayor Bill Hawley at the borough council meeting for rescuing James Gehrling from a fire at 5:30 p.m. Aug. 16 in his apartment. The first responders carried the injured Gehrling to safety from his residence above Frank & Tucci's tavern at 211 Oak St.
After the ceremonies where Council President John Cassandro read the letter of commendation, Wensel recalled walking up the steps to Gehrling's apartment and smelling the remnants from the fire extinguisher someone used in fighting the flames.
“There were a lot of chemical agents that made it hard to breathe,” said Wensel, who was on patrol when he saw someone with a fire extinguisher running outside the tavern, police said.
Painter and Wensel were forced to retreat from the building because of heavy smoke and they couldn't find the source of the fire.
Urias, an Irwin officer who was off-duty, and Swenson, were at the fire hall when the fire was reported, Urias said. They reached the scene quickly and had the protective fire gear and breathing apparatus, police said. They quickly located the source of the blaze and carried Gehrling downstairs to safety.
The mattress still was on fire when the first responders arrived on the scene.
“It was a quick response from all departments,” Wensel said.
Gehrling caused the fire by smoking in bed, which lit his mattress, police said.
He suffered severe burns on his legs and was transported by ambulance to UPMC Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh, Wensel said.
None of Gehrling's rescuers had an update on his condition Wednesday night.
Joe Napsha is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-836-5252 or jnapsha@tribweb.com.
