Today a Detroit teenager got a chance to meet the fire fighter who saved his life.
Detroit Fire Fighter Lt. Theresa Halsell wasn’t at the house fire that burned the teen’s home, but she was the guest speaker who taught his class at Woodward Academy how to survive a house fire.
Her lesson played out in real life for Thomas Locke when he woke up to a fire inside his Grandmother's home.
"There was a lot of smoke, I could barely breathe."
On March 31, firefighters were called to the house on Euclid near Clairmont and Linwood on Detroit's west side.
There they found the teen after he jumped from a second story window to escape.
"I broke the window with my hand, which is how I got these stitches."
Today the 8th grader was honored for using the lessons he learned during a fire safety class taught by Lt. Halsall.
"I would have probably died in that fire,” but the teen gives all the credit to the Lt. who taught him the most important lesson.. to stay calm.
"That he stayed at the window and did not go to the closet, or under the bed, or get back in bed and pull the covers up is the important part,” said Lt. Halsall.
After surviving the fire he said he knew he had to tell the fire fighter who saved his life.
Today he finally got the chance to say thank you during a Detroit Fire Fighter recognition ceremony.
"That's what keeps me going, knowing that I'm doing something that's going to save someone's life."
Lt. Halsall tells us while she's been speaking at schools for years this was only her second time speaking at Woodward Academy.
