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Richmond Hill cops lauded for risking their lives to evacuate residents from a recent house fire

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Photo: NYPD News

Four Richmond Hill cops sprang into action when a a building was burning this past Thanksgiving.

Police Officers John Fox and Frank Sarro, who are assigned as Neighborhood Coordination Officers (NCO) to the 106th Precinct, were on patrol at 9:30 p.m. on Nov. 23 when they noticed heavy smoke on Liberty Avenue.

When they pulled over to investigate, they met Police Officers Nicholas Cupulo and Terryann Ferguson, who had also noticed the smoke.

When the four officers found that the smoke was coming from a residential building located at 130-09 Liberty Ave., they immediately called the FDNY to the location and ran inside to start evacuating the residents.

Sarro and Cupolo went under the smoke to a second-floor apartment and got the attention of the resident, a 31-year-old man, who didn’t know that the building was on fire.

“There was a lot of smoke, and we saw the fire inside the apartment,” Fox told the NYPD News. “I’m glad that we were able to get the man out in time.”

The FDNY responded to the scene. The man that was evacuated was taken to Jamaica Hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation.

Once the building’s residents were safe, the officers went to the building next door where a banquet was being held and began to evacuate the people inside.

“These officers demonstrated courage in an extreme environment,” said Captain Brian Bohannon the commanding officer of the 106th Precinct. “Their quick actions led to the evacuation of dozens of people.”