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Trooper saves Ladoga family from house fire
LADOGA -- An Indiana State Trooper was about to depart for work Thursday morning when he noticed a neighboring Montgomery County residence on fire.
Trooper Ryan Winters' quick action likely saved the lives of his three neighbors.
Shortly before 7 a.m., Winters, who works out of the Lafayette State Police district, was getting into his car when he noticed the house was on fire.
He went to the residence at 226 N. Walnut St. and found the rear of the house fully engulfed.
Winters entered the front door of the smoked-filled house and found a young male asleep on the couch in the living room. The trooper was able to wake the young man and told him to leave the house because of the fire.
As a fellow resident of the southern Montgomery County town, Winters knew the family and was aware there were two more people to locate.
Winters then went upstairs and found Warren and Denny Bowling asleep in their bedroom. He woke the couple and assisted them downstairs and outside before the house was completely engulfed in flames.
After getting the couple to a safe location away from the burning house, Winters did a check of the area for other possible dangers.
As Winters returned to where he left the three, he found that Warren Bowling had re-entered the house. Winters again entered the burning house and found Warren just inside the door and escorted him to a safe location.
The smoke in the house was almost to the floor when Winters entered the house for the second time. Firefighters at the scene said if Trooper Winters had not stopped and rescued the occupants of the house, they would have probably been working a fatal house fire.
Winters was treated and rleased from St. Elizabeth Hospital in Lafayette for possible smoke inhalation. He returned to work later in the day.