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Woman saved by Gaffney firefighters will be released from hospital today A 94-year-old Gaffney woman continues to recover after firefighters rescued her from a Christmas Eve blaze at her home. Cenora L. Stevenson was listed in good condition at the Joseph M. Still Burn Center in Augusta, Ga., as of Thursday evening, hospital spokesperson Beth Frits said. Stevenson was transferred to the burn center following her treatment for smoke inhalation at Upstate Carolina Medical Center. A relative of Stevenson's expressed the family's appreciation to the Gaffney Fire Department and Upstate Carolina Medical Center employees for their efforts to save the woman's life. "Cenora is doing remarkably well. She is so independent for her age," said a relative who asked not to be identified. "She is scheduled to be released from the hospital today at noon. She will then return to Gaffney to begin rehab at the Peachtree Centre." Gaffney Fire Department firefighters discovered Stevenson lying on the floor unconscious inside her home when they responded to a fire at 5:46 p.m. in the 506 S. Logan St. residence. Firefighters Scotty Richards and Matt Davis found Stevenson while assisting in a full search of the house. Stevenson was able to place a call to 9-1- 1 about the fire shortly before she succumbed to the smoke coming from her bedroom, Gaffney Fire Department Chief Nathan Ellis said. "The 9-1-1 dispatchers knew from the call that someone was inside the house. They could hear the smoke detector sounding in the background when the call was made," Ellis said. "While on our way to the scene, we received a call from dispatchers of a possible entrapment." After removing Stevenson from the home, Ellis said firefighters used a "bag valve mask" - a type of artificial respirator - in an effort to put pure oxygen back into the woman's lungs. The fire department carries oxygen cylinders on its fire trucks as part of standard medical equipment. "After a few breaths, she gasped for breath on her own," Ellis said. "We continued to provide oxygen in the mask at a higher concentration than is normally present in the air. She was able to move her hands a little and had started to open her eyes when the ambulance arrived." A joint investigation by the Gaffney fire and police departments has determined the fire began near a space heater in the bedroom, Ellis said. "She was cooking beef stew on the stove," Ellis said. "She was in her regular clothes and may have made it towards the bedroom to check out the fire." Stevenson has no children but has a number of nephews, nieces and stepchildren who spent the day after Christmas taking care of personal matters for her. A photo of Cenora with her last husband, Bud, is among the photographs that family members were able to recover from the house. "We can replace the pictures. We are just thankful Cenora is going to be okay," the relative said. "No one in our family has ever been through something like this before. Everyone is just pitching in to help as much as they can." "Cenora is doing remarkably well. She is so independent for her age. She is scheduled to be released from the hospital today at noon. She will then return to Gaffney to begin rehab at the Peachtree Centre." - Cenora Stevenson relative "The 9-1-1 dispatchers knew from the call that someone was inside the house. They could hear the smoke detector sounding in the background when the call was made. While on our way to the scene, we received a call from dispatchers of a possible entrapment." - Nathan Ellis Gaffney Fire Dept. Chief |
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