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DC rookie firefighter saves woman with serious injuries from apartment fire

A firefighter six months into the job for DC Fire and EMS saved a woman from a burning apartment. She was taken to a trauma center with serious injuries.

WASHINGTON — A rookie firefighter from DC Fire and EMS saved a woman from her burning apartment Sunday morning. 

DC Fire and EMS shared the news on Twitter that Kojo Saunders — currently six months into his job as a probationary firefighter for Engine 10 in Trinidad — rescued the woman from her first-floor apartment. 

Firefighters were dispatched to the 2100 block of I Street Northeast around 1 p.m. They arrived on the scene at a three-story apartment complex and found the fire was confined to a first-floor apartment. 

DC Fire and EMS tweeted an interview with Saunders where he described rescuing the woman.

After entering the hallway outside the fiery first-floor apartment, Saunders said first responders forced the door open and were met with smoke.

The group of firefighters started moving a hose into the building as Saunder started hearing a woman coughing. 

"[I] started searching [and I] found the occupant and then I dragged [her] out," Saunders.

DC Fire and EMS tweeted that the woman was taken to a nearby trauma center with serious injuries. Firefighters were able to get the remaining fire under control, but fire officials anticipate that people will be displaced from their residences. 

Fire officials did not indicate how many people could possibly be displaced. The cause of the fire and a damage estimate is unclear at this time. 

Saunders is the second rookie firefighter to perform a rescue for DC Fire and EMS this year.

"It feels nice to do my job," he said.

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