Firefighter Of The Year
Larry Morris
Larry Morris
Age 39
Married to wife Sandra for six years, and little girl Sierra.
Grew up between Faulkville and Eden area. Has lived in Pooler since 1993.
Been fulltime firefighter since 2001, volunteer since 1993.
The story of Larry Morris’ firefighter’s career may have started at the age of eight. Many kids that age dream of being a firefighter when the grow up, but Larry had a more personal reason. His grandmother passed away due to a house fire, and he hasn’t forgot about it since.
His decision to become a firefighter was ultimately instilled in him by his father and uncle who were both firefighters. “Plus I had to much time on my hands,” joked Morris.
As any firefighter knows, it’s not a career or lifestyle you choose to do for the money. Instead being a firefighter is more about a person’s want to help the community when persons in that community are in jeopardy of losing their lives or are in need of help.
Larry’s spirit to help his community recently garnered him some recognition when he was chosen as this year’s Pooler Firefighter of the Year. Chosen by his peers for the award, Morris was the likely pick considering his heroic efforts in the last two years.
His most recent achievement was in saving a gentleman who was doing work in a manhole and was overcome by the gases in the hole. Sometimes the biggest heroes come in small packages. Because Morris was the smallest guy in the unit, he was the most likely candidate to go into the cramped space underneath the manhole, and was able to save the man who was unresponsive when Morris got to him. “We knew it was a dangerous situation,” said Morris. “This is what being a firefighter is all about. We know our job is risky, but you never really thnk about the risk at the time. All you are focused on is doing your best to try and save someone.”
Though the images of firefighters getting cats down from a tree may seem too clichéé these days to believe, Morris says it still happens. “Our guys just got called out the other day for a cat that was trapped up in the drive shaft of the car - we do it all.”
In fact, a firefighter’s duty often goes beyond saving humans. Morris was also a part of the unit that brought a dog back from sure death.
“We got called out to a fire in Bloomingdale. When we got there the house was fully involved and we could here a dog crying inside, so we went inside. When we found the dog he was unconscious on the floor - he had succumbed to the smoke,” remembered Morris. “ I took my mask off and put it over his face and we got him out. Once we got him outside, one of the ladies from Bloomingdale started mouth to snout resuscitation and we were able to bring him back. The veterinarian later told us that it was a good save and that the dog was going to be all right.”
Another time Morris and his unit were called to the nursing home for a person who was having difficulty breathing. When Morris and his fellow firefighter Fred Hazzard arrived on the scene, the woman had passed away. They began CPR and were able to bring here back, and though she only lived 15 more days after that, it gave her family time to visit her and say goodbye one last time.
Each day Morris comes to work is different, but that is what he likes most about being a firefighter. “Every call you ride is different,” says Morris. “You might get a call for a vehicle fire, and thirty minutes later you might get another vehicle fire call, but each situation has different challenges. When we go on medical calls we might be riding a call for someone having difficulty breathing, but when we get there, they might be dead. We try to do what we can to bring them back.”
The life of a firefighter isn’t always a glamorous, and the end result isn’’t always happy. Despite there being events they would like to forget, the worst ones are always the ones that haunt a firefighters emotions. “I remember going to a car accident one time involving a mother and her 14-year old daughter,” remembered Morris. “When we go there it was obvious her daughter had passed away. It was horrific, and to make matters worse the mother didn’t speak English and she couldn’t understand why I wasn’t trying to save her daughter. She was beating on my chest, and it was one of the most difficult things I ever had to do, but I finally had to communicate to her that her daughter was dead. Anytime there is a child involved, it really touches my heart, especially since I have a child of my own.
Undoubtedly, one of the most tragic events to happen to the Savannah area was when the Dixie Crystal Sugar Refinery exploded. Morris and a Pooler ladder truck were on the scene that first evening, and it was a sight he says he will never forget. “It was chaos, but it was great to see all the different municipalities working together to do what we could,” remembered Morris. “We were going places it was hard to get into. It was a rough night. We saw many things that weren’t pleasant.
Despite, there are memorable moments fire fighters can relish.
“The most memorable moments are when we’ve done the best we can and we were able to overcome an obstacle,” says Morris. “Like the man we saved in the manhole. He stopped by the station, and though I didn’t happen to be at the station at the time of his visit, it felt good to know he had told our assistant chief thanks for saving him.”
Larry Morris exemplifies the heroic firefighter spirit we all count on every. Congratulations to Larry for truly earning this year’s Pooler Fire Fighter of the Year Award.
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