A firefighter with Mobile Fire-Rescue recently saved a window washer suspended 450 feet off the ground after his equipment malfunctioned.
On July 29, Captain Robert Brown volunteered to attempt a daring rescue of the individual by rappeling from the 35th floor of the RSA tower down to where the man was. In recognition of his heroic act, Brown was recognized at a Mobile City Council meeting as the July firefighter of the month.
“Sending a HUGE thank you to Mobile Fire-Rescue,” the council wrote on social media. “We are so grateful for all you do to keep our city safe.”
RELATED: Mobile window washer rescued after dangling from RSA Tower
Brown described his harrowing experience.
“Once we got up there, we were pretty much in our own world. Nothing else outside of that particular moment even really existed,” Brown said. “You get in that mindset and mentality and mode where it’s time to go to work and you do it.”
Mobile Fire-Rescue Chief Johnny Morris praised Brown for his courage.
“He relied on his training, his teammates, his family. When he took that dive, like I said he had butterflies we talked about it this morning,” said Morris. “But when he rappelled down and got that young man and brought him back up everyone cheered from the street and we were happy.”
“It was one of my proudest moments as a fire chief watching that operation from the command post.”
Brown is also a hazmat and rescue technician.
Austen Shipley is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on X @ShipleyAusten
