Richard T. Eslinger, 12, schoolboy, rescued H. Roger Licht, 10, from burning, Boyd, Wisconsin, March 12, 1950. While at play with two other boys, Roger and Richard ran into a cabin and latched the door from the inside. As the door slammed, a lighted kerosene lantern fell from a wall and struck a stove. The walls and roof were ignited. Roger and Richard were showered with burning kerosene, each sustaining severe burns about the face. Richard ran to the door, broke the latch, and ran outside. He extinguished flames two inches high on his clothing by rolling in snow. Roger, partially overcome, was unable to reach the door and called for help. Richard rose and ran to the doorway. Inside the cabin, dense flames extended from the walls and downward from the roof to within three feet of the floor. Heat was intense, and visibility was limited to two feet. Richard crouched and stepped into the cabin. He groped through the interior for 10 feet and encountered Roger five feet from the door. As Richard reached him, Roger became unconscious and toppled toward the floor. Richard grasped Roger under the armpits, sustaining hand bums, and dragged him to the doorway and through it into the snow. Richard laid Roger in the snow and extinguished flames on his clothing. The cabin was destroyed in five minutes. Roger revived, and he and Richard were taken to a hospital. Roger sustained severe burns and remained in the hospital for two months but recovered. Richard suffered first- and second-degree burns of the face and hands and was hospitalized for a month but recovered. 3665-41976
41976 – 3665
41976-3665