Frantic 911 call from pregnant woman

CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. (WIVB) - A frantic woman called 9-1-1 as she waited to be rescued from her burning home. The call is now being used as a learning tool for first responders.

Kylesha Monterro considers herself lucky to be alive.

She was trapped in a smoky blaze last week, and made a frantic 9-1-1 call to Cheektowaga Dispatch:

Monterro said, "I'm pregnant."

The dispatcher said, "Okay. Okay. Just calm down. Stay low to the floor. The air is better low to the floor. Okay?"

 

Kylesha is nine months pregnant. She believes the situation could have been worse if it weren't for veteran dispatcher, Robert Fetzer.

The 9-1-1 call continues:

Monterro said, "Oh my God. Please come and get me. I'm begging you, please."

Fetzer said, "Ma'am. There's people on the way. Remain calm. You gotta be cool now."

"The smoke was coming in. It was so thick. I couldn't see anything," Monterro said.

News 4's Lorey Schultz asked, "You are screaming. Panicking. How did he help?"

Monterro said, "He kept me calm."

Calm, as smoke filled the bedroom; at one point Kylesha nearly lost it, thinking her dad was trapped too.

The 9-1-1 call continues:

Monterro said, "Where's my dad? Dad? Get my Dad."

Fetzer said, "Ma'am."

Monterro said, "Please get him out."

Fetzer said, "You're going to have to calm down, okay? If you want to help your father, you have to listen to me."

Monterro said, "Yes, sir."

Cheektowaga dispatcher Robert Fetzer said, "What I had to use here was repetitive persistance, repeat the same thing over again."
"Yes, yes you hear them screaming, but you can't let it affect how you handle the call."

Navigating her to a window proved crucial.

The 9-1-1 call continues:

Monterro said, "Please help me."

Fetzer said, "You're okay ma'am. As long as you get air, you're okay."

Monterro said, "Okay."

Fetzer said, "As long as she was getting air. She was fine, and I had to keep stressing that."

As it turned out, the woman's father was not home. Investigators have since traced the fire to problem with the stove in the kitchen.

Kylesha credits the dispatcher for saving her life, even though firefighters made the rescue.

Monterro said, "Thank you so much for keeping me calm."

Fetzer said, "If you're trapped, it's a harrowing experience."
"She's alive today because she had wherewithal to listen and do what the dispatcher said."

A lot of things went right in this case.

The smoke detectors worked.

The woman called 9-1-1.

She listened to the dispatcher who kept calm, and stayed low to the ground until help arrived.