MERION, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — Two brothers were honored at Merion Elementary School for taking quick action when they realized their house was on fire.
12 year-old Cooper Fiske-Kneafsey and his 10 year-old brother Ryder knew something was wrong when they smelled smoke in their Merion home, just three days after Christmas.
"We went downstairs and we saw the air vent smoking," said Cooper Fiske-Neafsey. His brother said smoke was all over the dining room.
The pair went to alert their parents, but their father, Dolan Kneafsey, initially told them to go back to sleep. "I thought it's the winter time, you see the steam coming out of the dryer vent, that's what I thought it was," he said.
"But when I went back down, there was smoke coming out of the floorboards," said Fiske-Kneafsey.
Once the boys told their parents again, everyone, including family dog Sandy, hopped out of bed and got out of the house safely.
The Lower Merion Fire Department gave the boys special plaques, presented by chief Charles McGarvey in a ceremony in front of Ryder Fiske-Neafsey's 4th grade class at Merion Elementary.
"Both Cooper's and Ryder's calm and courageous response…" "…brings great credit to themselves and to their families," proclaimed McGarvey.
The family was in a hotel for five weeks and recently moved into an apartment as they decide what can done with their home. But the recognition from the fire department meant a lot to the boys and their parents.
"It's incredibly sweet and meaningful," said their mother, Amy Fiske. "This has been an insane couple months so it's just a nice moment within all of it to have something positive."
