Dickerson receives Pulaski PD’s Life Saving Award

By MIKE WILLIAMS

The Patriot

The Pulaski Police Department recognized one of its own during Tuesday’s meeting of Town Council – awarding Sgt. C.J. Dickerson with the department’s Life Saving Award.

Lt. John Saul described to council an incident that occurred on Jan. 20 just before 2 p.m.

Saul said Dickerson responded as a backup to county deputies at the scene of an abandoned house on Longhorn Road in the Wurno section of Pulaski County, just outside the town limits.

Saul said when the call was dispatched initially it was for a mentally disturbed male who had broken into and set fire to an abandoned residence.

“When the officers arrived on scene there was heavy smoke coming from the residence, and they could hear a male voice yelling incoherently from inside,” Saul told council.

“Prior to their arrival, the officers were made aware that the property owner had initially made contact with the subject, tried to check on him, but the subject became aggressive and charged at the property owner.

“Because of this erratic and aggressive behavior, the fire department and EMS personnel held back until the scene was secured,” Saul noted.

“The officers arrived, but they were unable to get the suspect to respond to them from outside. They did notice there was heavy smoke coming from the residence at that point in time,” Saul continued.

He said the officers forced the back door of the structure open and entered into the residence without any type of fire gear.

“Once the door was breached, the heavy smoke made it hard for them to see anything inside of the residence. It was so thick that the officers were only able to remain in or near the residence for a few seconds at a time before they had to evacuate for fresh air, get a breath and then go back in.

“On one of their trips into the residence, they spotted a male subject who was lying on the floor. He was attempting to speak but was incoherent and couldn’t move on his own. So, the officers grabbed him and drug him out of the residence,” Saul said.

“Once they were outside it was determined that the man was possibly suffering from an overdose,” he said, adding the officers were level-headed and administered Narcan and within five minutes of them removing him from residence the entire structure ignited.

“It was the fastest I’ve ever seen a house go up. It was so old and so dry it was engulfed in fire in a matter of seconds.

“Absolutely no doubt in my mind that Sgt. Dickerson’s actions directly led to the preservation of life. He acted in the face of significant personal risk, displayed courage during the incident, and he represented the town and the Pulaski Police Department in a highly professional manner. His actions absolutely deserve to be commended, so we’re presenting him with our Life Saving Award,” stated Saul.