‘Udhailiyah firefighter helps rescue woman from near-fatal fire in Florida

‘Udhailiyah firefighter Abdulrahman F. Alshehri was recently recognized for his role in the recent rescue of a 21-year-old woman from a near fatal accident in Miami, Florida, in the U.S.

Alshehri and other Aramco firefighters are currently serving as part of the 6-month Aramco Fire Protection Department Firefighter Fellowship Program in the Miami Dade Fire Department. Recently, they responded to a rescue call to help a female civilian in imminent life-threatening danger at an apartment complex in North Miami’s West Little River neighborhood.

On arrival at the apartment complex, Alshehri on the B Shift Engine 7 crew, found the civilian hanging from a third-story window, gripping the window sill with her hands while her feet were precariously positioned on a small bracket.

The E-7 crew deployed a 24-foot extension ladder and one crew member ascended the ladder to hold her in place so she could release her grip from the window and be brought down the ladder to safety. But in panic and fear of falling, the woman refused to release her grip.

Alshehri and two other crew members made their way rapidly up to the distressed woman’s apartment with rescue tools. They forced the door open and pulled the woman by her arms up through the window and back into the apartment, saving her from potentially fatal injuries, if not death.

Alshehri and his crew’s rapid action and split-second decision making resulted in the successful rescue of a citizen in danger. For this reason, Lt. Shawn Thompson, from Battalion 5 of the Miami Dade Station 7 Fire Rescue recognized Alshehri and his crew with a meritorious citation for their life saving actions.