Heavy Fire Showing

I looked at Joel, held up my hand with five fingers, shouting, "e;We got maybe five minutes to find him before the roof collapses, and we are knocking on heaven's door."e; Joel nodded back, then followed Firefighter Halsey into the inferno. I crawled into the black abyss behind Joel, pausing for a second, recalling Psalm 23:4, "e;Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil"e;--not being able to remember the rest of the psalm. The young fire lieutenant and I started our primary search in what we thought was the living room but was too thick with smoke to be sure. We were desperately searching for the five-year-old when Halsey opened up the task force tip nozzle, attacking the raging fire. The inside of the blazing dwelling became unbearable; I could feel the hot steam leaking through every crevice of my protective gear. It felt like my skin was boiling off. From my perspective, things were getting beyond sporty. I imagined the roof collapsing in on us and the three flag-draped coffins that would be placed in the hose beds of fire station 3's fire apparatus as they made their way to the cemetery. I could feel the justifiable fight-or-flight adrenaline dump getting ready to push through my veins. Earlier in my career, I had survived a backdraft, but a roof collapse with subsequent flashover would crush, then burn, the three of us alive, with no hope of rescue. I wondered, If I did survive, would they let my infant daughter visit me in the burn center?