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NST122013

6 North Shore Towers Courier n December 2013 FIRE FIGHTER Concierge Stuart Kozlowski put out an oven fire When concierge Stuart Kozlowski jumped from his post to put out a fire, he said he was simply acting instinctively. The longtime concierge got a call around 6 p.m. on November 1 about an oven fire on the 22nd floor of Building 2 and said, “I just got up and went.” “I got up instantly, as soon as I heard,” he said. “The super and everyone were in different buildings. I figured I was the closest.” “I didn’t even tell the doorman I was leaving,” he said. “I grabbed the fire extinguisher and took the elevator up.” When Kozlowski got up the tower, he already saw smoke in the hallway. The apartment door was locked, but thankfully, the resident was conscious and could let him inside. General Manager Glen Kotowski also heard the call, grabbed his own fire extinguisher and shot up to the 22nd floor, where he said he too found a smoke-filled hallway and Kozlowski in the apartment. “In the apartment, you could barely see there was so much smoke in there,” said the concierge. Kozlowski found the fire under the kitchen stove’s glass top. He removed the glass top, and “fire shot almost to the ceiling,” so he closed it immediately. Kotowski said the resident had forgotten she left food in the oven. The concierge then lifted the top slightly and tried to extinguish the blaze. “There was so much smoke I could barely breathe,” he said. He went into the hallway to catch his breath then returned to the kitchen to completely put out the flames. “Stuart’s quick actions saved the building from severe smoke, water damage and potential injuries,” Kotowski said. Kotowski vented smoke from the apartment and Kris Debysingh, head of security, and building staff vented the hallway. Some other apartments on the floor had smoke alarms go off, but the crew spoke to the residents to “calm them and reset their alarms,” Kotowski said. There were no injuries, but some brief coughing from smoke inhalation. “The resident that lived there, she thanked me and she said, ‘You’re my hero,” Kozlowski said. However, the 19-year NST employee said he’s not a hero. “I’m just glad I could help,” he said. THE COURIER/Photo by Maggie Hayes Stuart Kozlowski, Building 2 concierge, put out a fire in a 22nd floor apartment, saving the resident and preventing any further damage to the floor and building. Photo courtesy NST Staff


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