Inferno 999 Transcript

Dramatic music plays as pictures of Manchester city centre appear on screen

Sound of phone being connected

Screen goes blank and the 999 call is played

Control Operator: Hello, Fire Service, where’s the fire
Caller: It’s downstairs
Control Operator: How many of you are there in the house?
Sound of a woman shouting in the background
Caller: Four of us
Control Operator: Can you hear me still?
Caller: I can’t breathe

Sound of sirens and the screen cuts to the fire engine going on blue lights to the fire. A caption appears on the screen:

04:57 hours
Blue Watch, Moss Side
Incident: house on fire, persons reported.

Camera moves to inside the fire engine and films the firefighters on their way to the incident

Voice over: For firefighters, a persons reported shout is the big one and what they joined for, the chance to save lives.

Camera cuts to firefighter Dave Freeman putting on his breathing apparatus equipment in the fire engine.

Firefighter Dave Freeman: It’s a confirmed fire, it’s confirmed people are trapped in the house.

The camera cuts to a picture and profile on screen of Dave Freeman:

Dave Freeman
35 years old
5 years service
Ex-Royal Air Force

Cuts back to the Dave talking:

Firefighter Dave Freeman: So obviously it’s a matter of urgency now. Another appliance is en route so hopefully they’ll be there before us to get them out.

Dave continues to put his breathing apparatus on and the camera cuts to the front of the fire engine travelling to the incident. The sound of the rest of the 999 call is heard.

Control Operator: Can you hear me?
Caller: (Screaming) I can’t see anything. I can’t get out.
Control Operator: Don’t worry there’ll be there in a minute.
Caller continues to scream and cry
Control Operator: Shout to the others to get on the floor
Caller: Get on the floor

The camera cuts back to the firefighters in the back of the fire engine and follows them as they exit the fire engine

Firefighter: Its going like I don’t know what.
Another Firefighter: Are you ready lads?

Voice over: The road’s blocked by badly parked cars and they have to run the last 50 yards to the blazing house. Every second counts and even passers by are having to help run the hoses for the lads

The camera shows firefighters and a young man running with the hoses to the fire and the house appears on screen with a fire blazing through it.

Voice over: This fire has taken hold in less than 10 minutes and the house is an inferno.

Firefighter climbs the ladder

Firefighter: (Shouting) Get that water up there. Hit the top, hit the top, not the bottom.

Firefighters are shown trying to put out the fire with water hoses

Voice over: Spraying water into the smoke and cooling it helps reduce the heat faced by the firefighter going up the ladder and the rescuer inside the house.

The screen cuts to footage shot by a camera on a firefighter’s helmet. He pushes down a neighbour's fence to to get to the fire.

Voice over: One woman has already been rescued and now, not wearing breathing apparatus and breaking all the rules Firefighter Kevin Williams has risked his own life to save her daughter.

Firefighter Kevin Williams is shown at the top of the ladder rescuing the woman from the house and carrying her down the ladder.