SAN FRANCISCO—The San Francisco Police Department praised several Mission Station officers who assisted residents after a fire broke out on the 1000 block of Shotwell Street. The Mission Station Command Staff are nominating these officers for a Medal of Valor. The incident transpired on November 29 at approximately 6:33 p.m., where officers observed smoke and flames and quickly took action.

Officers ran into the smoke-filled building to evacuate residents. While the building was unoccupied, an evacuated resident told an officer that her cat was trapped in the attic of an adjacent building. The officer retrieved the cat, bringing it outside to safety.

At an adjacent building which was also on fire, an officer heard a woman screaming for help. The officer located the woman and other residents in the backyard that was only accessible through a locked security gate. The officer broke down a portion of a fence to safely evacuate the individuals who were trapped in the backyard.

Another officer spotted a significant amount of smoke on the second floor of a separate building. Officers did not find any residents during a search, but when officers exited the building, a resident began screaming that her dog was still inside. An officer ran back inside the burning building, forced entry into the woman’s apartment, rescued the dog and brought it outside to safety. The San Francisco Fire Department arrived on the scene and extinguished the fire.

There were no reports of any major injuries during the fire, but one person was treated on the scene for non-life threatening injuries.

“Our officers acted bravely and heroically. They went above and beyond the line of duty in a dangerous situation to rescue San Francisco residents and their beloved pets,” said Chief William Scott.

“These SFPD officers demonstrated the true meaning of team work with each other and with our San Francisco Fire Department.”