Fire Critic An Unadulterated View of the Fire Service
Brody Channell meeting President Obama. photo by Mike Legeros
This past weekend was the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation 34th Annual Memorial Service. After the service, Brody Channel, a firefighter from Little Rock (AR), stopped on I-270 to assist a Police Officer with saving the life of a young child.
Just hours prior, Brody had been at the 34th Annual National Fallen Firefighters Foundation Memorial Service honoring his late father. Brody’s father, Dennis Channell, had died in the line of duty. Brody was in Emmitsburg at the Memorial Service where he met President Obama.
Brody stopped and helped Officer James Herman of the Montgomery County Police Department. Brody had identified himself as an out of state Firefighter and when it was over he went on his way. No one knew who Brody was until the Montgomery County Fire Rescue Service became interested to know who the firefighter was.
Nine-month-old Kenzlee Mae Cushman was headed home to Charles Town, West Virginia with her grandparents on Sunday when she froze and then became unresponsive, her family and the Montgomery County Police Department said Monday.
Kenzlee’s grandparents spotted a police officer on the northbound shoulder of I-270 in Gaithersburg, near the Muddy Branch Road exit, and her grandmother ran toward the patrol car with the child in her arms.
Brody Channell meeting President Obama
At some point during Officer Herman’s life saving action, a Good Samaritan, who identified himself as an out-of-state firefighter, stopped his vehicle on the side of I-270 to offer assistance. After rendering aid he departed before his name could be learned. The only real identifying feature was a shirt associated with the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Service that had occurred in Emmitsburg, MD earlier in the day.
With that information, and at the request of MCFRS, an impressive social media campaign was initiated by fire service members associated with the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation to try and track this person down. He was rather quickly identified via theFirefighter Nation Facebook page as Brody Channell who is a Firefighter with the Little Rock, Arkansas Fire Department.
Officer James Herman
Officer James Herman is an 11-year veteran of the Montgomery County Police Department and currently works in the 2nd District. Commander Falcinelli of the 2nd(Bethesda) District said, “I am very proud that Officer Herman was in the right place at the right time to save this infant’s life. He followed his training and his efforts resulted in a positive outcome. He is an excellent representative of the dedication and professionalism that Montgomery County Police officers possess.”
Below is the Hero Tribute Brody recorded to share information about his father. This was recorded this past weekend at the NFFF Memorial Weekend.
