"Gentleman walking down the street said 'there's a fire right there,' and I was like what? 'There's a fire right there.' So I got out and ran up the street," explained Officer Tawana Dickerson.
The officer was met with the sight of the burning house as she dashed from her traffic post at a nearby car accident.
The flames poured out of the window of an East Oak Lane house early Friday afternoon.
35th District Officer Tawana Dickerson ran inside upon hearing there was someone stuck inside.
"I saw the fire shooting out of the windows, windows busting out. Next thing you know, I just said, 'I'm going in'", said Officer Dickerson.
When she emerged, it was with 57 year old Mike Smith.
Authorities explain he told them he was working on his kerosene heater when there was a spill on his generator.
Dickerson says the explosion left Smith disoriented. She found him in his living room.
"It was like completely engulfed in smoke, so I really couldn't see. I grabbed him, and pulled him outside," explained Officer Dickerson.
Firefighters soon arrived on the scene to knock down the intense blaze that quickly gutted the home.
In the officer's four years on the force, running into a burning building is a first. But if someone's life was on the line, she says she'd do it again in a heartbeat.
Now the house is a burned out shell. The possessions charred and destroyed. But Smith got out alive, thanks to the actions of this officer.
"I guess it is part of the job where you don't think about it while it is happening. You just know that you have to do something," said Officer Dickerson.
What she calls a job description, was really a life-saver.
