Todd Morris has worked for the Jackson Local School District in Jackson Township, Ohio, for the past two years. Photo / Todd Morris
Todd Morris has worked for the Jackson Local School District in Jackson Township, Ohio, for the past two years. Photo / Todd Morris
Todd Morris, a school bus driver, rescued two dogs from a house fire in Jackson Township, Ohio.
The fire occurred on January 22 while the Fisher children were with their grandmother.
A GoFundMe campaign for the Fisher family raised more than $27,000 after their home was destroyed.
Todd Morris, a school bus driver in Jackson Township, Ohio, was heading home from a doctor’s appointment on a recent Wednesday morning when he saw plumes of smoke rising into the sky.
“I recognised it as being not normal chimney smoke,” said Morris, a retired police officer and US Army veteran.
That day, January 22, the weather was so cold that local schools were closed.
“We were in sub-zero temperatures,” said Morris, who drove out of his way to follow the smoke.
“As I turned the corner, I saw that it was one of the residences for two of the children on my elementary school bus route,” he said. “I knew that the students were off that day as well, and that would equate that they were probably home.”
Morris, seen in 2000, retired as a police officer in 2014. Photo / Todd Morris
Morris said in addition to transporting the students, he generally looks out for them.
“I frequently refer to the kids on my bus as my kids,” Morris said. “Every kid on my bus has a nickname.”
Morris, 54, got out of his car and sprinted towards the house as he dialled 911.
“I started knocking on the door and yelling out the kids’ names,” he said. “I had no response, so I wound up forcing entry into the residence.”
Cash, the Fisher family’s German shepherd. Photo / Todd Morris
Morris said he kicked in the locked door. He retired as a police officer in 2014.
“I’ve had to open a door a time or two,” he said. “I relied on my training ... I just went into autopilot and did what I know.”
When he got into the smoke-filled house, he could see fire upstairs. He looked around – including upstairs, near the flames – and screamed, asking if anyone was home. Morris had to step outside several times to take a breath.
“The smoke was getting pretty heavy,” he said.
A few minutes into his search, he found two dogs – a German shepherd named Cash and an American bulldog mix named Lady – sitting at the bottom of the steps. Both looked terrified.
“I got them out of the house and took another good breath, then went back in,” Morris said. The German shepherd had difficulty walking, so he picked him up and carried him outside.
The remains of the house a week after the fire. The garage was the only portion of the home the fire didn’t reach. Photo / Todd Morris
The fire department showed up minutes later and started putting out the flames.
Matt Fisher and his wife were at work when the blaze broke out at their home. Their four children – ages 14, 10, 8 and 4 – were with their grandmother, who was watching them while school was out.
When Fisher got the call that his house was on fire, his heart sank.
“I was instantly panicked because I knew the dogs were there,” said Fisher, adding that the family also had a cat, Jack, who did not survive the fire. “It’s just so devastating. It’s unbelievable.”
Still, Fisher said, he’s grateful to Morris for saving his dogs and alerting authorities to the fire – which is still under investigation.
Morris said he acted on instinct, and he would have done the same thing whether his students lived in the house or not.
The Jackson Local School District commended Morris for his quick-thinking actions.
“His instinct to act without hesitation in a moment of crisis is a testament to his character,” said Chris DiLoreto, the district’s superintendent.
Although he and his wife were able to salvage some personal items, the house is “a total loss,” Fisher said.
