Corringham: Chief Fire Officer recognises police couple’s brave rescue

An Essex Police officer and a member of police staff have been commended for their bravery by the county’s Chief Fire Officer.

Dog handler PC Dave Bridge and his wife Samantha, a criminal justice support officer, were awarded the commendations by Essex Chief Fire Officer Rick Hylton for helping to save the lives of two of their neighbours.

Mr Hylton says:

“I’m immensely proud of the people we have here in Essex who go above and beyond to help make Essex safe.
“Our police colleagues ran towards danger to help save lives, putting their own lives at risk. It takes real bravery and courage to run towards a fire and even more so to run into it to rescue others.
“I and those people, will forever be grateful for your bravery and quick thinking.”

Dave and Samantha were recently recognised at a ceremony to celebrate the achievements of Essex County Fire and Rescue Service.

A commendation is the highest honour a Chief Fire Officer can give.

The couple were woken up during the early hours of 18 June 2023 to what sounded like an explosion as lightning struck their elderly neighbours’ home in Corringham.

Without hesitation, Dave and Samantha entered the fire- and smoke-filled bungalow to rescue their neighbours Barry and Margaret, plus their six dogs and their cat.

The fire took crews from Corringham, Orsett, Basildon and Grays two hours to extinguish.

At the time, Dave explained how he and another neighbour banged on the windows and, when Barry answered the door, he and Samantha rushed in.

He said then:

“Samantha set about getting hold of Barry and Margaret and taking them outside.
“I took all the dogs, one by one, under my arm and put them in the back of their car.
“While I was doing that, the ceilings were alight and the ceiling in the kitchen fell down. The smoke was horrendous – it was stinging your eyes. By the time we got outside the whole roof was alight.”

Samantha added:

“People down the street were bringing out cups of tea. A couple of neighbours allowed Barry and Margaret to sit in their house until the ambulance came.
“It’s lovely that we’ve been recognised but the whole community pulled together that night.”

They were both commended by Essex Chief Constable Ben-Julian Harrington in December for their selfless and quick-thinking actions.

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