They used the standard line: "in the right place, at the right time," but that wasn't enough for Brandy Robinson.
To the two Minneapolis police officers who saved her and 20 other family members from a house fire early Wednesday, Robinson was more than grateful.
"All of us were sleeping, and if it wasn't for them ... none of the kids would have got out," she said.
The Minneapolis Fire Department honored officers George Warzinik and Michael Honeycutt in a short ceremony Friday in north Minneapolis for the quick thinking and bravery that led to the rescue. It was the first time Robinson had been formally introduced to the two men, who roused the family when smoke detectors in the home they were renting failed to alert them to a massive electrical fire.
Robinson, who heard about the ceremony at the last minute, came and shook both officers' hands. Emotion rose in her voice as she repeatedly said how grateful she was.
Minneapolis Fire Chief Alex Jackson awarded Warzinik and Honeycutt certificates to commemorate their bravery. The ceremony marked the first time the MFD had formally acknowledged Minneapolis police officers, Jackson said.
Warzinik said getting the families outside and keeping them warm was his priority, and he was surprised not to hear smoke detectors going off in the house.
"You're conditioned to react, but not to something like that," he said. "We're always told, 'That's [the firefighters'] job. You don't want to go running into a burning building.'"
