By Stephanie Allen
Orlando Sentinel
LONGWOOD, Fla. — John Newton heard the deputy scream for help as he and two other neighbors smashed windows and looked for her through the billowing black smoke.
It was shortly after 11 p.m. Monday when Newton heard a “bang” and looked out his living room window to see the orange flames rising from the Seminole County deputy’s house, he said.
He dialed 911 and then ran barefoot across the street to help the other neighbors already searching for any signs of life.
“I didn’t think anyone was there because nothing was going on,” he said.
And then they heard the deputy yell for help.
Seminole County Sheriff’s officials are crediting the quick-thinking neighbors and a smart German Shepherd for saving the deputy and her family from their burning Longwood-area home.
The deputy, her husband and their two children, ages 1 and 4, suffered smoke inhalation and burns and were listed in serious, but stable condition at local hospitals, officials said.
The family was asleep when the fire broke out trapping them inside the house on Country Hill Drive, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Newton and two other neighbors, who were outside at the time, saw the house burning and rushed to help, Seminole Chief Deputy Dennis Lemma said.
They pounded on the front door and then grabbed a lawn furniture and started smashing windows, Newton said.
The smoke was thick and building inside the home, he said, so they kept smashing glass to let it out.
That’s when they heard the deputy scream.
They couldn’t see her, so Newton said they led her to an open window with their voices and pulled her free.
She seemed incoherent, he said.
Within minutes, fire crews arrived and broke down the front door, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
The deputy’s husband then found his way out and collapsed on the front lawn, Newton said.
The family’s dog escaped, too, and led firefighters twice back inside the burning home to find the children, Lemma said.
Firefighters carried them out and immediately rushed the kids to a local hospital, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
“The family canine was just absolutely remarkable leading firefighters inside,” Lemma said. “It absolutely saved their lives.”
Emergency crews also took the deputy and her husband to local hospitals with serious injuries, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
They suffered smoke inhalation and burns, Lemma said, but were listed in stable condition. The family’s dog, which neighbors described as a trained German Shepherd, is also recovery.
Lemma said the Sheriff’s Office is grateful for the quick-actions of neighbors and fire crews, but also called the deputy a hero.
“She came out and her number one concern was to get back in there and save those kids,” Lemma said. “She’s a hero and acted as such.”
Newton, who received minor burns on his feet and cuts on his hands and arms, said the deputy tried several times to crawl back through the smashed windows. He and the other neighbor held her back until fire crews arrived.
The Sheriff’s Office hasn’t released her name, or identified any of her family members.
The State Fire Marshal’s office is investigating what caused the fire, though Lemma said preliminary reports show “no foul play.”
Newton said he doesn’t want credit or recognition for running to help. His adrenaline kicked in and it “was just normal reaction,” he said.
“I just pray that everything is going to be OK with them,” he said. “It’s just a terrible thing to happen to a young family.”
Copyright 2016 The Orlando Sentinel