Richard Alfred Watson saved Brittany M. Thompson from burning, Pine Knot, Kentucky, December 16, 1990. Brittany, 1, was in a bedroom of her family’s mobile home when fire broke out in the adjoining kitchen. Watson, 32, handyman, was nearby when he heard the mobile home’s smoke alarm. Knowing that Brittany was alone in the mobile home but not her location, Watson entered and began to search for her. Unable to find her during two trips inside, Watson exited; then, learning her location from Brittany’s mother, he entered the mobile home a third time and, despite dense smoke and spreading flames, found Brittany in the closed bedroom. Watson picked her up from her crib, wrapped her in a blanket, and carried her outside to safety, where he then collapsed. Brittany was hospitalized overnight for observation but did not sustain injury. Watson singed his beard and clothing and sustained minor smoke inhalation, from which he recovered.
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