Joseph Wayne Wallace rescued David Z. Lawrence from burning, Tallassee, Alabama, February 8, 2002. David, 5, was in a bedroom of his family’s one-story house after fire broke out in an adjoining room and filled the house with smoke. At a nearby service station, Wallace, 37, automobile mechanic, learned of the fire, and that a child was missing, by means of a scanner transmission. Recognizing the address, he sped to the scene, where he saw smoke and flames issuing from the house. Wallace went to the front door and entered, calling out to David. Guided by David’s reply, Wallace ran through a burning hall to the opposite end of the house, where he broke into the bedroom, which had caught fire by then. He felt on the floor for David, found him under a bed, then grasped him and returned to the hall. Starting to retreat, Wallace was struck by a piece of falling ceiling that knocked him and David to the floor. Still carrying David, Wallace crawled through the hall and into the living room, then stood and went to the front door, where he handed David outside to safety. Wallace left the burning house, then took to the ground to catch his breath. He and David were taken to the hospital, where they were treated for burns, David’s to his feet and Wallace sustaining second-degree burns to both knees and his right hand. They recovered.
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