Thompson saves man’s life

Thanks to the quick reaction of a neighbor, a man, and a family pet, are alive.

Flames erupting from a nearby house about 3 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 2, 2021, were seen by Tyler Thompson and his wife, Jessy Heard, when they saw smoke and quickly investigated.

“Me and my wife were home when all of a sudden she said, ‘Honey, call the fire department,’” Thompson said. “I jumped up and ran to the window and seen this God-awful fire and took off running … out the back door to the house.”

Thompson said he ran to the front yard of the house on Hoffman Street gathering rocks to break a window when he heard “whining and wheezing” coming from the side of the house and realized someone was in the house. He broke open the window and helped the man and a dog out.

“I flipped him over on his back and did CPR,” Thompson said, explaining that he screamed for help to get the man further away from the house. “Two boys from behind the house and helped me pick him up and get him over the fence.

“Everybody started showing up.

He was covered in blood and soot and stuff,” Thompson said.

“I wasn’t frightened until the house started making noises,” Thompson said, thinking “what am I doing and I kind of got panicked. then realized, I shouldn’t think like that.”

Thompson said he kept asking Biffany if anyone else was in the house and all Biffany would say was he wasn’t supposed to be in the house.

“Who’s in the house?” Thompson said he asked the man. “He wouldn’t answer me. He finally said ‘my dog.’”

The man in the house, Jon Biffany, 43, was treated for smoke inhalation at the scene, taken to the hospital and then arrested in connection with outstanding warrants, according to Pea Ridge Police.

Biffany was still in the Benton County Jail Tuesday morning in connection with two violation of a protection order and violation of a no contact order in lieu of a $20,000 bond.

Thompson, who works with a non-profit, Speak up about Drugs, said he was not frightened even though he does not have special training in emergency services. He cut his hand climbing over the fence.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation by the Benton County fire marshal, according to Pea Ridge Fire Chief Jack Wassman.

Firefighters from Pea Ridge, Avoca, Northeast Benton County and Little Flock assisted in extinguishing the fire.

TIMES photographs by Annette Beard Little Flock Fire Department firefighters T. Eason and D. Lawyer were two of the many firefighters from four agencies who responded to the scene at 956 Hoffman St. Saturday afternoon in Pea Ridge. For more photographs, go to https:// tnebc. nwaonline.com/ photos/.

Pea Ridge Police were assisted by Matt Fry, park ranger for the Pea Ridge National Military Park, as they restrained Jon Biffany who was pulled from the burning house on Hoffman Street. Biffany was taken to the hospital for observation, then booked into the Benton County Jail on outstanding warrants.

TIMES photographs by Annette Beard Pea Ridge firefighters Quinn Gehler and Clayton Bass hose off a firefighter as snowflakes fall after the house fire on Hoffman Street was extinguished.