Thirteen police officers who evacuated residents of the Arnold Manor high-rise when the building caught fire Dec. 9 have been honored by Arnold city officials.
Mayor Joseph Bia and council on Tuesday presented the officers with framed certificates of appreciation for their efforts.
Bia said their efforts were crucial in helping to prevent injuries and/or deaths among the building’s elderly residents. He said the officers’ help was especially needed since the fire started at about 2 p.m., when many of the volunteer firefighters are working their regular jobs away from the city.
As a result, the initial responding fire crews were lightly staffed, leading fire officials to summon help from the police, he said.
“They heeded the call from their brothers in red,” the mayor said. “They started on the top floor and went room to room taking everybody out.”
“Most of the guys weren’t even from here,” Bia added.
In fact, three officers from Arnold responded along with 11 officers from seven other police agencies or jurisdictions.
The officers who were honored, and their agencies, included:
• Arnold PD: Ryan Hanford, Tim Christian and Rob Haus
• Lower Burrell PD: Brandon Nedley and Daniel Rote
• New Kensington PD: Salvador Zepeda, Christian Baker, Paul Manke and Jason Kerr
• Upper Burrell PD: Adam Pataky
• Vandergrift PD: Joseph Gray
• Allegheny Twp. PD: Brian Jenks
• Pa. Attorney General’s Office: Wes Biricocchi
• Westmoreland County Detectives: John Clark
An investigation by the Pennsylvania State Police fire marshal determined that the cause of the fire was electrical in nature and it was ruled accidental. It began in a fourth-floor apartment of the 76-unit building while the occupant of that apartment was not home.
