Editor's Note: The video in the player above maybe distressing for some.
A harrowing rescue involving a five-year-old jumping to safety during an apartment fire in Peoria was caught on body-camera footage earlier this week.
According to officials, Peoria County deputies at 10:25 p.m. Tuesday responded to an apartment fire at the Edgewood Apartment complex in the 2700 block of Radan Court. Upon arrival, deputies reported flames coming out of the building, and family of four trapped on the third floor.
In a press release, the Peoria County Sherriff's Office says deputies attempted to make entry into the building, but that "flames had overtaken the hallway." Video and photos from the scene posted to the Sherriff's office Facebook page show officers attempting to enter a stairwell engulfed in flames.
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According to the release, deputies worked with citizens and used a blanket to catch a five-year-old, who had been trapped on the third floor by the blaze.
Chilling body-camera video from the scene shows neighbors and fire officials urgently directing the child to jump out of a window, shouting "Now! Now!" The video goes on to show the group eventually catching the child safely in the blanket.
"We got him!", someone says at the end of the video.
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"This is such a great example of our first responders working with citizens in our community to save lives," Peoria County Sheriff Chris Watkins said in the release. "As you can see and hear in the body-worn camera footage, this was a very intense situation. I am proud of everyone involved and thoughts and prayers for the families affected by this fire."
According to officials the three other family members in the apartment were also rescued from the fire. The cause of the blaze is still under investigation, the Sherriff's office said.
