Fire Death Prompts Investigation of 911, Firefighting

The death of 43 year-old woman in her Spotsylvania County (Virg.) home last month has sparked an investigation of how the woman’s 911 call was handled, and how firefighters searched the house as she was still on the phone with a dispatcher. Sandy Hill was located 20 minutes after firefighters arrived, upstairs in the 1950s home that investigators say was a maze of doors and stairs. Hill could not open any windows to escape or get the attention of firefighters outside. The dispatcher kept her on the line and relayed location information to firefighters at the scene. “I’m going to die,” Hill told an unnamed county dispatcher at one point. County fire chief Chris Eudaily says smoke and the confusing layout of the home kept firefighters from quickly locating her. Two other occupants of the house escaped. Read more here, and listen to the radio radio traffic and 911 call.

Fire radio: here

Hill’s 911 call: here