JACKSON TOWNSHIP, Ohio – It was a subzero January day in Jackson Township, Ohio, when Todd Morris, a bus driver for Jackson Local School District, sprung into action.
Morris, 54, was driving home from a doctor’s appointment on Jan. 22 when he saw thick clouds of smoke billowing into the sky. As a retired U.S. Army veteran and police officer for Jackson Township – located about 20 minutes northwest of Canton – Morris’ responsive instincts kicked in and he drove towards the source of the smoke.
As he came closer, he recognized the house that was burning belonged to two of the students on his bus route. With school canceled that day due to below-freezing temperatures, Morris feared the children were home at the time of the fire.
“I started knocking on the door and yelling out the kids’ names,” Morris told The Washington Post, noting that he also called 911 while rushing to the house. “I had no response, so I wound up forcing entry into the residence.
“I’ve had to open a door a time or two,” said Morris, who retired as a police officer in 2014. “I relied on my training. … I just went into autopilot and did what I know.”
Once inside the home, Morris saw fire upstairs and yelled to ask if anyone was home, but to no response. Plumes of “pretty heavy” smoke filled the home and forced him to step outside a few times to regain his breath.
A few minutes later, Morris spotted two dogs – an American bulldog mix named Lady and a German shepherd named Cash – afraid and sitting at the bottom of the stairs. Cash had difficulty walking, so Morris carried him outside and got Lady out of the home, too.
“I got them out of the house and took another good breath, then went back in,” Morris said.
As the fire spread throughout the home, Morris realized the kitchen ceiling was about to collapse. Still, he searched the home to ensure he had “cleared the house and got everyone out safely,” he told The Post.
Minutes later, the Jackson Township Fire Department arrived and extinguished the house fire. The cause of the fire is unclear and remains under investigation by the State Fire Marshal’s Office, The Canton Repository reported. However, Jackson Township Fire Chief Tim Berczik said the fire appears accidental, News 5 Cleveland reports.
Fortunately, the Fisher family wasn’t home at the time of the fire. The family’s cat, Jack, didn’t survive the fire, however.
Matt Fisher and his wife were at work while their four children – ages 14, 10, 8 and 4 – were with their grandmother due to school being canceled.
When Matt received a call that his home was on fire, he said he “instantly panicked because I knew the dogs were there.”
“He was willing to risk his own life to go in there,” said Fisher, 38. “It just blows my mind that somebody would do that.
“It’s just amazing. It tears me up,” he added.
Morris brought Cash and Lady to his home to hang out with his wife and their four dogs while the Fisher family focused on their home, which Matt described as “a total loss.”
Fisher said he was overwhelmed with emotion when he met Morris after the fire.
“I was like, ‘I don’t know if you want a hug, I just have to give you one,’” Fisher said. “Todd really came through. I don’t have the words.”
Morris, however, deflected credit to the firefighters and first responders who put out the house fire.
“I was simply in the right place at the right time,” he said. “The real heroes are the guys that showed up after me. They do this day after day.
“My biggest thing now is to do all I can to help. Every little bit matters,” he added.
A friend of the Fisher family launched a GoFundMe campaign to support the family in the aftermath of losing their home in the fire. More than $30,000 has been raised as of Tuesday morning.
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