Pierre Johnson saved Audrey A. Stewart from burning, Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, May 17, 2012. Stewart, 91, was in a wheelchair in a second-floor bedroom at one end of her family’s home after fire broke out in an attached garage at the other end. Winds drove the flames into the residence, blocking entry through the front door. Johnson, 33, who lived nearby, responded to the scene, where he learned that Stewart was still inside the house and on the second floor. He went to a living room window at the front of the structure, punched through its screen and glass, and, hoisting himself up to the sill, climbed inside. Johnson crossed the smoke-filled living room to the stairway and ascended to the second floor. After looking for Stewart in one bedroom and then the bathroom, he found her in another bedroom. He picked her up and, carrying her, returned to the stairs, descended to the first floor, and went back to the window. He placed Stewart on a chair while he moved furniture away from the window and then handed her through the window to others outside. Johnson then exited the window to safety. Both he and Stewart were taken to the hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation.
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