Étienne Marchand: The Fire on De la Gare Street

Here, read the transcript of the interview with Étienne Marchand, an eligible firefighter in the Saint-Eustache Fire Safety Department.

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I got a call about a fire in a building. On the way to the scene, I heard on our radio Lieutenant Paulin saying he was in serious trouble, it was starting to get hot. When I arrived on the scene, Chief Gingras told me there were two people caught inside. So, I saw firefighter Aubin. I told him… to go inside with me with the hose that was in the street. When I got to the door, the smoke was coming out 2 feet from the ground. That means a flashover is liable to happen quite soon. So, I went in behind the hose, which the firefighters had already started. I went into the fire. Visibility was zero. I heard something knocking to my left, so I went and looked, and found the wardrobe where lieutenant Paulin was. So, I escorted him to the exit where firefighter Aubin was. I went back in with the same hose, which the firefighters still had going. I heard a noise on my right. I stretched out on the floor, keeping my foot on the hose. I found firefighter Gauthier’s boot, and escorted him to the exit. While I was escorting him, when I was around 10 feet from the door, there was a flashover. So, I grabbed firefighter Gauthier and went out. I practically threw myself out. And Lieutenant… firefighter Girard, who was there, he sprayed us with the hose because we were starting to catch fire. When I arrived at the scene, I really had no time to think. When the chief told me there were two people inside, I didn’t give it much thought. It was all instinct. I went in. I knew I didn’t have much time because the smoke was pretty low. The rescue took around thirty seconds. I got some light burns, first degree burns on my neck. But nothing that left any marks. If I’d stayed in the fire any longer, when the flashover happened, I could have been more badly burned.