Officer Rescues 15 People From Burning Building

A police constable has been praised for his bravery after he ran into a blazing building and rescued 15 people in the early hours of Saturday 4 February.

PC Matt Hill was the first response officer on scene at the fire which had taken hold of a large grocer's shop in Ilford Lane, Ilford. On realising that people were trapped in a first-floor flat above the store, he acted without hesitation to run into the smoke-filled building and get them out.

As he reached the top of the stairs, he found that the front rooms were also by now ablaze and that the only way out was via the rear fire escape. However with the help of two members of the public who had followed him into the building, he managed to lead them all to safety.

The cause of the fire is being treated as suspicious.

Police had been called at 04:20hrs to reports of a fire at B&B Cash and Carry, a building in the middle of a terraced block. When PC Hill arrived, he was informed by members of the public that people were trapped upstairs. PC Hill, 39, who is based at Ilford, immediately ran through the front door of the flats next to the shop but it wasn't until he reached the top of the stairs that he realised how quickly the fire had spread.

PC Hill said: "It was incredible how quickly the flames engulfed the building. But with the help of two members of the public who followed me up the stairs, we managed to get everyone to safety and without injury.

"When I arrived on scene and realised that people were trapped, my instincts took over. The priority was to get everyone out as quickly as possible."

All those rescued were ushered into police carriers to keep warm before being taken to local authority accommodation.

Inspector Paul Vear has praised the bravery and initiative of PC Hill. He said: "I am quite sure that the actions of PC Hill and the two members of the public, saved lives. They went into a blazing, smoke-filled building with the sole purpose of helping those trapped."

Chief Superintendent Sue Williams, from Redbridge borough, said: "I am proud of the actions of PC Hill. Police officers carry out acts of bravery every day but this was not an everyday occurrence."

Neither PC Hill nor the two members of the public suffered injury and did not require hospital treatment.

(GK)