Marlboro Township police officer rescues woman from burning home
MARLBORO TWP. ‒ A township police officer is being recognized for bravery after he carried a woman from her burning home Sunday morning.
Police body camera video shows officer Marc Merriweather removing the woman from her home at 14213 Tope Ave. NE only minutes before the structure was fully engulfed in flames.
As he took the woman from the burning home, a propane tank blew up on the deck.
"Mark is an exemplary officer and what he did was just incredible," Police Chief Ron Devies said. "I mean, he was in a dangerous situation when that propane release valve fired up. He picked her up and carried her out."
Merriweather arrived at 6:49 a.m. and started knocking on the door. The drama that unfolded was captured on video and audio.
“Police," he said. "Your deck’s on fire."
A voice replied from indoors.
"Come on," Merriweather replied. "You gotta come out. Come on. Come out the front, it's back by your propane tank. “
Inside, a woman said her mother was in bed.
Merriweather asked for the mother's location.
“Mom, your deck’s on fire,” said the daughter.
“What?” said the mother, still inside.
”Mom, we gotta go," said Merriweather. "Propane tank’s right here.”
“My mom can’t walk by herself,” said the daughter.
"I'm gonna grab her," Merriweather said.
“Are you serious?" said a female voice.
“Yes, Mom. Very serious," Merriweather said.
More Marlboro news: Township trustees, Stark Parks address concerns over district's development plans
The interior conversation took place partially in the elderly woman's bedroom, where a walker was seen next to a bed.
"The thing is, the fire was on the deck, which was right outside her bedroom window," Devies said. "Propane tank was right there, too."
Devies said that when he responded to the fire scene shortly after 7 a.m. "half the roof was in, it was just like a rolling fireball. That fire had so much fuel that just went right into the roof."
Three minutes after Merriweather arrived, he reported that both women were out of the house.
At 6:54 a.m. he and the daughter moved her mother into a car, where they could turn on the air conditioning to filter out the smoke from the blaze. Merriweather was treated with oxygen at the scene before resuming patrol.
Devies noted that, unlike firefighters, police officers wear gear — body armor under a polyester uniform — that holds heat in.
It's unclear what caused the fire. Devies referred questions to township fire officials, who could not be reached for comment.
The police chief said a neighbor's surveillance camera showed the fire had been burning since 8:07 p.m. Saturday.
"But they thought it was like one of those small patio Sterno things, you know, they really didn't give it much thought ... until they saw the flames in the morning and called 911," he said.
Devies said he will give Merriweather a departmental commendation and nominate him for Stark County's annual award recognizing a law enforcement officer.
"We couldn't be more proud of him right now," he said. "He made us all shine. And I'm proud of everybody on our department. But he's the bright shining star right now."
Reach Nancy at 330-580-8382 or nancy.molnar@cantonrep.com.
On X, formerly known as Twitter: @nmolnarTR
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Marlboro police officer Marc Merriweather saves woman from house fire
