Bravery award for burning flat heroes

Published on Wednesday 28 May 2008 10:22

TWO men who risked their lives when they forced their way into a burning flat to rescue an elderly neighbour were today being honoured for their bravery.

John Dodds, 39, and David Shaw, 45, prised open a jammed living room floor and, choking on thick black smoke, managed to rescue pensioner Alan Cowan, 87, who had become trapped in his living room in Warriston Drive.

They were today among a number of police officers and civilians recognised by Lothian and Borders Police for acts of extreme bravery. Mr Dodds, a joiner, was watching TV with his wife in their ground-floor flat on a Sunday evening, in February last year, when they heard a smoke alarm going off.

He said: "Alan had not been keeping that well and it was not the first time his smoke alarm had gone off. Last time I had gone up he had just been cooking so I thought, 'What's he up to now?'"

However, as he ran up the stairwell he quickly realised this was not a false alarm.

Mr Dodds said: "I looked through the letterbox and could see smoke coming out under the living room door.

"I could smell it as well, it was like burning plastic and quite pungent. I could hear him moaning and shouting and at that point I kicked the door in.

"I ran to the living room but could not get the door open – something on the other side was jamming it. I could hear Alan moaning 'I'm burning'."

The living room door was actually being blocked by furniture, although it is not clear how this came about. It is believed when the fire started Mr Cowan might have fallen, knocking furniture in front of the living room door.

It was at this point that Mr Shaw, who lived in a flat opposite to Mr Cowan, arrived at the scene. The two men together managed to prise open the door, removing furniture as they went, and enter the living room. They found Mr Cowan, dazed and confused, cowering in a corner.

The source of the fire was an electrical heater which appeared to have set light to the carpet.

Mr Shaw, a teacher, said: "When I arrived John was already in there shouting that he couldn't see Alan. Alan was shouting that he was burning. We had to crawl underneath this thick black smoke to get him out."

Sadly, Mr Cowan, who suffered only minor burns in the fire, died a few months after the incident, because of old age.

Both Mr Shaw and Mr Dodds were today due to receive Lothian and Borders Police Meritorious Awards for their heroics. Mr Shaw said: "I was not expecting an award. I didn't fee like I had done anything extraordinary."

A police spokesman said: "The actions of both John and David are extremely commendable."

TRIO RECOGNISED FOR THEIR PUBLIC SPIRIT

FIONA VEITCH, Hazel Irvine and Douglas Brown were all set to receive Lothian and Borders Police Meritorious Awards at today's ceremony.

Fiona Veitch stopped to help at the scene of a road crash in Breich, West Lothian, in November 2006, where one person had been killed and six were seriously injured, including a one-year-old baby.

Ms Veitch, 40, from Lanark, looked after the baby throughout the ordeal.

In April 2007, Hazel Irvine, 38, from North Lanarkshire, also came to the rescue after a crash involving a vehicle which had overturned on the Boghall to Bathgate road.

Two passengers had been thrown from the car on to the roadway and one man could have died had Ms Irvine not managed to clear his airway and kept it open until the arrival of paramedics.

Douglas Brown, 24, from Edinburgh, helped police catch two youths in the Bruntsfield Links area in July 2006.

While out cycling, Mr Brown was attacked and punched by a youth. He tried to defend himself by putting the youth in a headlock, but the teenager's friend arrived and started punching Mr Brown in the head.

Mr Brown fled, called the police, then followed the pair at a safe distance until officers arrived and arrested them.

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