WATCH: Two Texas Sheriff’s Deputies Run into Burning Home to Save Disabled Man

LIVINGSTON, Texas — Two Texas sheriff’s deputies rushed into a burning home to rescue a disabled man trapped on his porch. The entire porch went up in flames seconds after the deputies pulled the man to safety.

Polk County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office Corporal Roper Ellison and Deputy Darin Brooks received information about a wheelchair-bound man unable to exit his burning home in the early morning hours of December 19. Dashcam video shows the two deputies arriving at the fully involved house fire.

Dispatchers advised the deputies while they were heading to the burning residence that the homeowner was disabled and in a wheelchair. The dispatcher said the man was unable to exit the home and they lost contact with him.

“As we approached, I got in my mind what we needed to do,” Corporal Ellison told Breitbart Texas Wednesday evening. “I gathered all the facts of the call, including the man’s weight, so we knew what to expect.”

The video shows the deputies arriving at the house as flames erupted from the windows and roof. Without hesitation, the two deputies ran onto the porch of the house. At one point, an explosion is seen just as Corporal Ellison runs past a window.

“I had just passed the window when it blew out,” Ellison continued. “I couldn’t see it but Brooks saw the shards of glass flying out in front of him.”

At that point, Ellison knew they didn’t have much time left. “The timer is going,” he said was the thought that ran through his mind. “We gotta get out of here.”

Deputy Brooks said it felt like being on a movie set with the fire and explosions.

“It was nerve-racking as we drove up and I saw how involved the fire was,” Brooks explained. “Once I jumped out of the Tahoe, that went away and I did what we had to do.”

A statement from Polk County Sheriff Byron Lyons stated:

The homeowner had made it to the end of the front porch but was unable to continue any further. Corporal Ellison then physically picked the homeowner up and placed him over his shoulder with Deputy Brooks ensuring their safety and carried him away from the fire and to the safety of their patrol vehicles, with both deputies suffering minor burns/injuries from the engulfing fire.

Corporal Ellison and Deputy Brooks’ quick response and immediate actions resulted directly in saving the homeowner’s life. They demonstrated exceptional performance by intervening in an extremely dangerous situation, without regard for their own safety, to save a life, which, without such intervention would have very likely resulted in death.

Lyons said that 20 seconds after the two deputies pulled the man to safety, fire fully engulfed the front porch where the man was stranded. The two deputies were treated for minor injuries and returned to their duty shift.

Deputy Brooks added, “If we had arrived 20 seconds later, the outcome could have been completely different. One extra traffic light or a car not getting out of the way could have been the difference between life and death.”

On Wednesday, Sheriff Lyons presented the two deputies with a Lifesaving Award “for their heroic actions.”

“Corporal Ellison and Deputy Brooks epitomize everything the badge is about,” Sheriff Lyons told Breitbart. “With no regard to their own safety, they displayed the selflessness, courage, bravery, and loyalty of law enforcement officers who leave their families at home to go do their job without knowing if they, themselves, will return home at shift’s end.”

“Very few people would have run into the flames coming from this house,” the sheriff said. “These guys did, and a man is alive because of it.”