Citizen hero honored; volunteer heroes supported through donation
Chris Bachman was on his way to work at Masterbrand’s Decora plant on Meridian Road when he saw the smoke and flames coming from the upstairs of a home on Third Avenue last Wednesday morning.
Another vehicle coming down the hill in the opposite direction was the only other person on the road that morning so Bachman stopped his vehicle in the road and began to call 911 to report the fire at 413 Third Avenue. He spoke to dispatcher Jeremy Berger, who assisted him through the scenario. Bachman ran up to the front door of the home and began pounding on the door.
“I had to knock for awhile until they finally came out,” Bachman said.
According to Jasper Fire Chief Kenny Hochgesang, if Bachman hadn’t stopped to alert them, the family in the downstairs apartment would likely have perished with the family of three that succumbed to the smoke and soot in the upstairs apartment. “There is no telling how long it would have been before we would have been notified of the fire,” Hochgesang said.
Every second counts.
The two downstairs residents finally came out and by then Dubois County deputies and Jasper police were arriving. Seeing that the downstairs residents had been evacuated, the two deputies and two officers attempted to entered the upstairs apartment. They began to crawl on their hands and knees up an outside stairway to enter the home through heavy smoke. Falling debris from the roof stopped their own valiant efforts and forced them back down the stairs.
Alex Snedeker, 20, and Linsey Parsley, 20, were pronounced dead at the scene while 3-year-old Robert Parsley was taken to Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Bachman, 43, a father of three, is a material handler at Decora and has been employed there for about 15 years. Today, he was honored with a declaration from Jasper Mayor Terry Seitz announced December 2 as Chris Bachman Day.
Masterbrand’s president, Dave Randich, made a $5,000 contribution to the Jasper Volunteer Fire Department.
Randich said the donation to the fire department was suggested by the management of the Decora plant. “It is a small token of our appreciation to the City of Jasper and the all-volunteer fire department that responded last week,” he said. “But, it was mainly to recognize Chris.”
A special ceremony and announcement with all the associates at the Decora plant was held at 7 a.m. When Bachman stepped onto the stairs from the administrative offices, all the plant associates burst into raucous cheering and clapping.
“Chris is a wonderful man who has been with us for 15 years,” Randich said. “It was very heartwarming to see the affection and love that all of our Decora associates showed towards Chris for his act of heroism last week.”
According to Hochgesang, the Jasper Fire Department will likely put the $5,000 in the department’s fire truck donation account. “We are looking at a new rescue truck to be purchased in 2016,” he said. “We can use that money to maybe put something extra on that truck.”
Hochgesang said Bachman’s actions likely saved those two people and stopped the fire from spreading further.
“It’s sad to think of those that died upstairs,” Bachman said. “I took my kids to see Santa this weekend and teared up thinking about the little boy who had died. It made me feel blessed to be there with my sons.”
