Woman thanks dispatchers and firefighters for Waterford rescue

ADT staffers flown in from Texas to meet resident they helped

Waterford — Even though Grace Rogers says she panicked amid fire alarms and the acrid smell of smoke from the basement, she had the presence of mind to tell firefighters about her 8-year-old granddaughter Sophia’s guinea pig.

“I figured she’d never forgive me if I forgot,” said Rogers, 74, who was dozing in her daughter and son-inlaw’s Waterford house in October when a basement dehumidifier went haywire and started smoking.

The smoke sparked an ADT security system installed in the house, starting a chain reaction of calls between ADT dispatchers in Texas, the Goshen Fire Department and Rogers’ family, who were at a soccer game in Lebanon.

By the time Rogers reached her family by phone, she already saw a fire engine pulling up. Firefighters found the source of the smoke after evacuating Rogers and Wizma, the guinea pig. There were no injuries and there was no significant damage to the house at 12 Spinnaker Road.

“I didn’t think of 911,” said Rogers, who was visiting from Rhode Island at the time. “You know what you’re supposed to do but when the time comes, you go blank. I was petrified. I was going around in circles not knowing what to do.”

On Thursday, Rogers and her family met Sandra Johnson and Tonya Wilson, the Texas dispatchers who alerted local firefighters, during a ceremony at the home among ADT, Goshen Fire Department and Waterford leaders.

“It’s exciting,” Rogers said. “It sort of makes everything come full circle to see everything that was done.”

The dispatchers said out of the 150 to 200 signals that pop up in their system every day, about 100 result in calls to local authorities across the country.

“It’s fulfilling knowing that sitting behind the phone every day, you actually help save someone,” said Johnson, an ADT dispatcher for almost two years. “Most of the time it’s a false alarm, so that one real alarm makes a difference.”

Johnson and Wilson received life-saving commendations from ADT, and Waterford First Selectman Dan Steward presented a certificate of recognition honoring the first responders.

Goshen Fire Department Chief Todd Patton said firefighters spent almost 90 minutes in the house, ensuring the dehumidifier didn’t ignite a larger electrical fire and making sure Rogers and the pet were safe.

“There was a lot of smoke that filled the basement and it got upstairs and set the alarm off,” Patton said.

Bob Tucker, spokesman for ADT, said the event recognized not only the work of dispatchers flown in from Texas to meet Rogers, but also to honor the efforts of volunteer firefighters. ADT offered the Goshen Fire Department a $5,000 contribution to purchase life-saving equipment.

“They’re not paid to do this, so we like to recognize them,” Tucker said. “This is an example where everything worked, people and equipment.”