February 19, 2009
Neuropathology Fellow saves neighbor from fire
UW Neuropathology Fellow Russ Huber doesn’t think of himself as a hero, even if that’s what the local papers are calling him. While studying for an upcoming medical licensure exam in the early morning hours — 4:30 a.m. to be exact — on Sunday, Jan. 25, Huber said he thought he heard an opossum digging through the trash. When he looked out the window, he saw pieces of his neighbor’s house falling onto the ground.
“I ran outside and his whole front room was on fire,” said Huber, who ran back inside and dialed 911. Huber woke up his family, including his wife and four children, and then went back outside. He noticed his neighbor’s light had come on, and then saw that he was struggling to open a window.
“I told him to bust out the window, which he did,” said Huber. “I asked him, ‘Is there any way for you to get out?'” Huber’s neighbor told him about a nearby ladder, which Huber then set up and held while the man climbed down.
The fire department arrived soon after. Huber said firefighters got things under control within 30 minutes.
Huber talked with his neighbor after the ordeal. The neighbor told him that during the fire, he was disoriented and wasn’t making good decisions.
“He had gone to the door and burned his hand,” said Huber. “For him, it was very important that I was there and he felt very good about it.”
Huber said prior to this fire, he’d been at the scene of a couple of car crashes, and had provided first aid.
“In this kind of situation, I did the standard things you do in an emergency situation,” he said. What are those standard things?
“Stay calm, call 911, get everyone to safety and don’t become a casualty,” he said.
