A local firefighter and council member rescued a wheelchair-bound man from his burning home on Sunday, December 14, 2014.
The fire happened Sunday evening at 504 W. Grove Street in Maquoketa, Iowa. Harvey Untiedt lived in the home.
Matt Tranel, who's a volunteer firefighter and lives behind the home, heard the 911 call on his scanner at home.
"The page said there was a Christmas tree on fire in the house with a man trapped in the kitchen," Tranel said.
Typically, firefighters report to the station before helping, but Tranel said he had to stop and help immediately.
Tranel said he pulled up to the front of the house and saw the fire through the front door. He tried to open the front door, but it was locked. Tranel then progressed to the back door, which was also locked, but he was able to break in.
By that time, city council member Corey Simonson had also heard the page on the scanner and came to help.
"Once we got into the house we had to belly crawl," Simonson explained.
Crawling through the house, the men said they couldn't see anything. They yelled, 'Where are you? Where are you at?.'
Untiedt's cough led them to him. They began to wheel Untiedt out of the home, when they said his wheelchair got caught on the table.
"I had to take a deep breathe and stand up and turn the wheelchair around," Simonson recalled. "The smoke was so bad, I started to gag."
The men escaped the home with Untiedt; he was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.
While Tranel and Simonson say they know they could have been severely injured, they said they're glad they took action.
"When that page went over the radio, I couldn't just sit back down in the chair, when someone needed help and I'm only half a block away," Simonson said. "I couldn't stay home and do nothing."
One firefighter received minor injures during the fire.
Untiedt has since been released from the hospital and is has been assisted by the Red Cross. He's currently staying in a hotel.
Firefighters say Untiedt had a real Christmas tree, and that's where the fire was believed to have started. Officials say they want to remind those who have real Christmas trees to keep them watered.