Tuesday 9 August 2022 07:25 AM Several children and babies hoisted on first responders' backs saved from ... trends now
Firefighters in Denver placed children onto their backs and shoulders as as part of a heroic rescue effort as parts of the Mile High City were deluged by floods.
The children were part of 29 people who were saved during Sunday evening's flooding in the city which occurred after almost 3inches of rain fell in just a couple of hours.
Wading into chest-high water, the rescuers carried children, sometimes two at a time, out of the deep brown water and onto dry land.
Multiple children were helped from their minivan which suddenly broke down as it became stuck in an underpass at 38th and Blake Street.
Firefighters helped rescued several children, including a baby.
Several children were rescued from a submerged vehicle in the middle of a Denver highway, as flash flooding slammed the area on Sunday
Wading into chest-high water, the rescuers carried children, sometimes two at a time, out of the deep brown water and onto dry land
Witnesses watched on in awe as the firefighters walked into the cold water to save the children
Several children were saved from the waters. The firefighters then gave them pizza
The firefighters worked together to rescue the children, often carrying several at once
'They're sitting on top of their car just waiting to be rescued,' said Eli Espinoza to ABC News.
'The firefighters didn't hesitate. That's what the true hero is.'
One portion of the video shows a firefighter walking backwards out of the water with two children on his shoulders.
'Put them both on his shoulder,' Espinoza said. 'No hesitation, just walking back... And it was just like, natural instinct.'
A second firefighter was at the minivan rescuing a newborn.
Throughout it all, the rescuers helped to keep the children calm.
The firefighters raced into action after the rainfall fell over a period of just a few hours
The firefighters worked together to rescue the children from the stricken vehicle
Once everyone had been rescued, the one of the fire crew members came to the group with pizza which had been in his car.
'He was like, 'We have dinner,'' Espinoza said. 'And it was just a funny little joke. And it had everyone smiling.'
'It's a demanding career to be in the fire service,' Lt. JD Chism with the Denver Fire Department. 'There's also a bit of adrenaline going when you're in that cold water, and you're asked to move those two kids out.'
'Sometimes... you're going to come across a child who's incredibly calm,' he said. 'And you're surprised by the situation. And other times, you're going to have a kid that's frantic. Anybody who's a parent, or who has spent a lot of time with children, knows: The calmer we can be when we're talking to them (and) the calmer we can be to distract them from the actual events that are taking place, then we can get them to a safer environment.'
Rescuers helped save a number of people from vehicles stuck on an Interstate
Drivers were stranded in their cars on the I-70 Interstate near Denver and had to be rescues
Rain and Thunderstorms in United States From will affect a vast swathe of the country between Tuesday and
