Lineworkers perform dangerous work every day to ensure customers have access to the electricity they need to power their daily lives. This line of work requires bravery, and, recently, an American Electric Power (AEP) Ohio lineworker exhibited that bravery on his way home from work when he helped to rescue a family from a burning home.

Matt Mitchell, an AEP Ohio lineworker, was turning onto the street where he lives when he saw a woman in the front yard of a house, frantically waving to draw attention. The house was on fire, and the woman shouted, “There are kids in there!

Without hesitation, Mitchell, who is a father of two, sprinted inside, where the mother was holding a 8-month-old baby. He searched the home, found two young girls, and escorted them and their mother out the back door to safety.

As the size of the flames grew, Mitchell re-entered the home to see if anyone was still inside. He was assured by a neighbor that everyone was outside and safe. However, the family’s two dogs were near the side of the home and unable to get away from the fire because they were wearing shock collars that kept them close to the property. Mitchell helped a neighbor remove the collars and brought the dogs to safety.

The home, unfortunately, was destroyed. Mitchell still drives by the yellow-taped damage every day while he’s headed to and from work. Thanks to his quick actions, the family and their dogs were unharmed.

Mitchell’s heroism isn’t a surprise to Distribution System Supervisor Dusty Bethel. Bethel describes him as a rock-solid employee who cares about the details of his work and quietly goes about getting it done, without complaint, every single day.

“Me personally, I’d like to have a whole garage full of guys like him,” Bethel said. “He understands his role. He comes in every day, you tell him what to do, and the man goes out and does his job. He’s a great employee and a great person.”