Salute to heroes: Teenage Lexington firefighter saves baby girl from burning home
Payton Story and his firefighter father, Jon, both responded to scene in January 2022
Payton Story and his firefighter father, Jon, both responded to scene in January 2022
Payton Story and his firefighter father, Jon, both responded to scene in January 2022
Payton Story of Lexington is one of this year's Salute to Heroes honorees, as chosen by the American Red Cross of the Piedmont Triad.
Story was just 19 years old when he responded to the scene of a mobile home fire on Estates Drive on Jan. 29, 2022.
When he arrived, he says three-quarters of the home, which is just a few hundred feet away from his West Lexington Fire and Rescue firehouse, was fully engulfed in flame. Frantic family members quickly informed him that there was a baby girl still inside. That news changed his approach a lot and he admits he didn't really have time to be scared.
"You start running a lot of things through your head, you know, 'What do I need to do?' 'What's more important?' and the best way to go about it," Story said.
While this was happening, Payton's firefighter father, Jon Story, was working at his full-time job at Midway Fire and Rescue, which was more than 12 miles from the scene.
"It really, really made me nervous, of course, listening to everything, not knowing, or knowing I was not there to help and make sure he was safe for one and then once we heard of the infant still inside, it added to the fear and it just took forever to get here," Jon Story said.
While his father was making his way to the scene, Payton made his way inside the home and ultimately found the little girl.
"She was in a pack-and-play so she was really low to the ground, smoke hadn't banked down that far. It was still very smokey and a toxic environment. She was in almost a car seat, like a cradle, so I was able to pick that up and she did cry one time whenever I handed her out, so that was kind of a relieving feeling there," Story said.
After he passed the little girl out through a broken window, he got out of the burning home, too, while other responding firefighters worked on putting out the flames. Payton's father arrived shortly afterward.
"As soon as we stopped, I was straight off the truck to go to find and make sure Payton was OK," Jon Story said. "Of course, a dad moment kicked in and I was worried for his safety and to make sure he was ok. Then after that, we found out the actual story of what happened and he was the actual one to make the rescue on it. It really, really made you proud.
"He's a very big mentor in my life and I look up to him a lot, so that was pretty cool for him to be there and be with me and talk about it," Payton said.
Payton is now a full-time firefighter with the Lexington Fire Department but still works part-time with West Lexington Fire and Rescue, Midway Fire and Rescue, and Wallburg Fire and Rescue. He began his career as a junior firefighter at West Lexington at the age of 13, spending many nights and weekends early in his childhood with his father, who is part-time at West Lexington now and full-time at Midway.
"It's exactly what I wanted to do. As soon as I was able to know what I wanted to do, that's exactly what I wanted to do," he said.
Payton said he was able to bring donations to the family that lost its home a few months after the fire and sees the little girl he saved. He calls the experience "a relief" and that it brought him closure.
This year's Salute to Heroes awards ceremony is set for Sept. 21 at The Colonnade at Revolution Mills in Greensboro. Tickets are available here.