CHEROKEE COUNTY, Ga. — An off-duty firefighter in Cherokee County might have just saved a 79-year-old woman's life on Monday when he noticed the home was possibly on fire.
Captain Brady Cornelison was heading down Hickory Flat Highway when he noticed smoke coming from a single-story building.
"Any time, any time you see that kind of smoke coming from a house, the experience that I have, I said 'that's not right,'" Cornelison told 11Alive
He immediately pulled into the driveway and went to the door to alert whoever happened to be inside.
“I knocked several times and no one came to the door. I noticed that the door was unlocked, so I went inside and asked if anybody was there,” Cornelison said.
After searching around the house, Cornelison returned outside where he said he noticed the woman looking up at the chimney.
Once she spotted Cornelison, she notified him that she believed her home was on fire as well. At that moment, he quickly dialed 911 and minutes later firefighters arrived to swiftly put out the fire.
According to a Facebook post from Cherokee County Fire, the woman later told them she noticed her buck stove was extremely hot and she looked out her back window and saw the smoke.
Cornelison also mentioned that the woman had burned wood in the chimney for years and years. Over time, he said, things build up creating a greater risk for additional burning that could have damaged the home.
"She said her heater was making a strange noise and that was actually all that creosote and all that burning inside the chimney," Cornelison added.
The homeowner gave her thanks to the entire fire team, according to the same Facebook post. However, Cornelison said it's all just part of the job.
"I would like to think that if I wasn't a fireman, I would still stop and do the same thing," he said.
Cornelison explained that fire officials typically see an uptick in incidents during the winter months, just from people looking to heat their homes using chimneys and space heaters.
He said if you see a potential house fire, leave the rescuing and firefighting to the professionals.