Mark J. Pierce attempted to rescue Betty J. Rathbone from burning, Morristown, Tennessee, December 15, 2009. Rathbone, 70, was in the living room of her ground-level apartment after fire broke out in that room. A neighbor, Pierce, 47, disabled electrician, was returning home as others were attempting to gain access to the unit. Despite dense smoke and flames that virtually filled the living room, Pierce entered the apartment through the front door and called out to Rathbone. Receiving no reply, and thinking that she might have been in her bedroom, at the rear of the unit, Pierce proceeded across the living room and through a hallway to that room. He was overcome by smoke and collapsed to the floor at the bedroom doorway. Responding firefighters fought the flames to make entry, then located Rathbone and Pierce. Pierce, who sustained severe smoke inhalation and burns up to third degree, was removed from the apartment and taken to the hospital. He was then transferred to a burn center, where he was detained two weeks for treatment, including skin graft surgery. Rathbone had died at the scene.
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