The Let Down
Chapter Six
By GCS
Stepping into the building was like stepping into one of those haunted houses at the carnival. Nothing looked like it should.
Thick black smoke hung in the air distorting everything; making it nearly impossible to navigate their way through the entry and into the space beyond. Johnny led the way with Dwyer close behind, one hand resting on Johnny's shoulder keeping contact between the two rescuers, the other reaching into the blackness.
Both men hunkered low…as close to the ground as possible while still able to walk; trying to get below the curtain of black. Eerie crackling noises echoed into the haze, a sound any seasoned firefighter would recognize as the electrical wiring being severed by flames inside the walls while the current struggled to reconnect. Sparks flashed from outlets as the dying charges flew from the broken wires like a strobe light at a party. Sounds of falling debris intensified the knowledge that they needed to make this quick.
Halting his progress, Johnny turned and pointed a gloved finger at the door on his left and then motioned with the same gloved hand at himself and then the door opposite. He watched as Dwyer tilted his head in question. Johnny repeated the motions and moved toward his side of the hall all the while thinking Roy would have understood without any direction, but now was not the time to dwell on that. Right now he and Dwyer had to find the missing people and get the hell out of there.
Passing his gloved hand quickly across the door, Johnny knew it was safe to enter. Light filtered in the dirty office window casting ghastly images through the thick smoke onto the dilapidated furnishings inside. He moved quickly around the space, careful to check beneath the desk. He shook his head knowing that people often hid beneath heavy furniture as if it would somehow protect them from the fire eating away at the very structure they were in. Sure it would give them some protection from falling debris, but smoke inhalation tended to get to them long before the fire ever did. Realizing he didn't have time to dwell he moved away from the desk and over to the shadows behind the file cabinets.
After a quick sweep, Johnny returned to the hall, closed the door and crisscrossed an X on the surface. He then turned to meet Dwyer as he exited the office he had been checking. They both nodded indicating no victims had been found before moving further into the darkened hall.
As the two paramedics moved deeper into the abyss, the linesmen directed the spray after them while still sweeping the lobby where they waited. Chet and Marco had positioned themselves between the main entrance of the building and the beginning of the hall to preserve their escape. Chet had the HT at the ready if Johnny needed them to move closer.
Johnny felt the hairs on the back of his neck bristle.
The heat in the room changed.
The smoke pulled back into the walls.
He knew in an instant they were in trouble. He stopped and held his hand out in a stop and wait movement, but Dwyer didn't recognize the movements that Roy would have responded to immediately.
Outside Roy alternated from watching the flames shoot up the side of the building to Mike Stoker as he watched the flames, hoses, gauges, Cap and the movements of the other crews. It was a lot to take in, but not that different than treating several patients at once, getting vitals, splinting fractures, applying bandages all while talking to the hospital and keeping an eye on the scene. The similarities outweighed the differences; both jobs held the lives of others in their hands.
He wiped the sweat from his brow with his shirt tail; with a huge sigh he pushed off the hood of his car and turned to walk over to the driver's door. He'd seen enough and right now felt totally unneeded.
As he reached for the door handle a noise caught his attention. The sound was unmistakable. A resonating boom shook his car. Air rushed past him. He flinched and ducked his head as debris pelted the windshield of his car.
In a few seconds he was running up beside Captain Stanley who was in the process of calling for another squad. The radio dropped to his side. Another squad was at least twenty minutes away. When he saw Roy surprise and relief washed over his face. "Man I'm glad to see you. Suit up Roy. We've got two possible code I's."
"Johnny?" Roy asked breathlessly.
"And Dwyer. Partial collapse."
"Any communication?" Roy asked as he turned to take the extra turnout coat Mike Stoker had pulled from the engine.
"Not yet."
"Chet and Marco?"
"They're inside keeping the exit clear."
"Good." Roy swung the SCBA around to his back, secured the straps and took the HT Mike handed him. "We'll find them." He said as he moved toward the entrance.
As he half walked half ran to the darkened doorway, he slipped the mask over his face and only stopped long enough to tighten the strap of his helmet before disappearing into the thick haze.
The building continued to groan. Dust and ash floated down from the floors above like snow on a winter morning, quietly drifting and spreading like a blanket over the pile of debris below, and beneath, two firefighters tried to clear the fog from their minds.
Johnny tried to call out to Dwyer, but it came out as an unintelligible raspy moan. In his mind he'd called out. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried again. "Dwyer?"
"Yeah."
Dwyer's voice came from right beside him, but without any light trying to reach out to him was disorienting; the throbbing in his head didn't help either. "Where are you?"
"Right here."
Johnny felt a hand grip his elbow. "You okay?" Dwyer hesitated a little too long before answering. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong except we just had a building practically land on our heads." Dwyer's voice was laced with agitation. "What about you? Any injuries to report?"
"Nah, I'm okay."
"Sure you are, Johnny…we both are…or at least we will be when they dig us out of here."