By Denise Hollinshed
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Copyright 2007 St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
EAST ST. LOUIS, Mo. — Firefighters rescued a 72-year-old man trapped in his burning home Tuesday evening, but the man later died of burns and smoke inhalation.
East St. Louis Assistant Fire Chief Thomas Grimmett said they received a call at 9:55 p.m. about a house fire and found Robert A. Archer of the 1600 block of Central Avenue trapped inside. His wife, Shirley, had escaped through a rear window in the one-story brick structure. She was treated for smoke inhalation at the scene.
“When we first came through the door, that was where all the heavy smoke and fire was,” Grimmett said. “They had to knock that down and then run through there. They didn’t try to extinguish it, just knock it down. Then they did a sweep of the house. The house was kind of sectioned off and most of the fire was in the living room area, and he was found in one of the bedrooms.”
Thomas said Archer was given CPR before paramedics arrived and transported Archer to Kenneth Hall Regional Hospital in East St. Louis. Archer was pronounced dead at 10:30 p.m. in the emergency room.
The living room sustained heavy damage, and the rest of the house sustained smoke and water damage, Grimmett said. The Illinois State Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating.
Neighbor Edward Hyde, 52, said he was watching television when he and his mother heard someone banging on the front door of the home. They saw the Archers’ grandson trying to get the door open. At the same time, they saw Shirley Archer running to another neighbor’s house for help. He then saw smoke coming from the roof and could smell it.
Hyde said he called 911.
“I saw them when they got him out,” Hyde said. “They were pumping on his chest.”
Hyde said Archer was retired from the public works department in East St. Louis.