Law enforcement officers hate the word hero -- it’s almost as if it’s a forbidden word for them. To most, doing their job what they swore to do is nothing heroic.
Mississippi Highway Patrol Master Sergeant Brad Edmondson feels no different. He just happened to be in the right place at the right time. And there are two people in Carroll County that are thankful that he did.
Edmondson said around 8 a.m. Thursday, February 21, he had just crossed into Carroll County on Highway 35 from Attala County.
“I was on my way to Leflore County for a grand jury,” he said.
He said as he crossed into Carroll County, he saw smoke. At first, he thought it was fog – but it was raining and it should be foggy.
“So, then I thought someone was burning something,” he said. “And I was going to stop to tell them that they should stop because what they were doing is causing a traffic hazard.”
However, the scene that Edmondson came to wasn’t what he expect.
“When I got on the scene, I saw it was a house fire. I immediately jumped out and ran across the yard,” he said.
He said once he topped the hill, he saw smoke billowing from under the eve of a house and he stopped. Edmondson said he was met by a woman who said her father was still in the house. Without a second though, he sprang into action.
The man met Edmondson at the door, and he carried him to safety.
“I met him somewhere around the door. I grabbed him up and took him down the driveway to get away from the house.”
He said he thought the lady said someone else was in the home and he went back, but it was only the man and his daughter. Edmondson said the lady was asleep in the home and was awaken by the smell of smoke and got out. But, she couldn’t get to her father.
Edmondson said after making sure he everyone was safe, he called 911 and first responders from Carroll County and a fire department out of Attala County arrived on the scene.
“After they arrived, I took a shot of oxygen to make sure I was okay, and I went to LeFlore County,” Edmondson said.
He said for him, he didn’t give it a second thought.
“I acted out of fear more than anything else. I did what I did out of fear of letting somebody else down that was inside of that house and out of fear that I’ll let the guys that I serve with down. It’s what anyone would have done.”
Just, don’t call him a hero.
“Please don’t say the ‘h’ word. Don’t call me that. I just did what anyone would do,” he said.
He said that morning he was rushing to work, but he was right where he needed to be at the time he needed to be there.
“My wife and Sheriff Clint Walker told me that God put me at the right place at the right time. I just thought it was a brush fire, and I’d tell them they can’t do that and go on,” he said. “But, when I saw it was a house fire. I just reacted. There was no real thought process.”
