St. Paul firefighters nationally recognized for carrying kids from house fire
Firefighters Jacob Ryks and Mason Conlin found multiple young children in a burning home in Payne-Phalen last year and carried them out.
'Despite the valiant efforts,' four of the six children died, said the award from Firehouse Magazine. Two of the children and their mother survived.
The Michael O. McNamee Award of Valor is named for a now-retired Worcester, Mass., fire department district chief.
It 'reflects a larger mission about what it means to be brave in the face of danger,' according to the magazine. McNamee 'displayed great courage at the Worcester Cold Storage Warehouse Fire in December 1999, when he made the bold decision to stop additional Worcester firefighters from entering the building when there already were six lost inside.'
It was the middle of the night on Jan. 3, 2024, when an unattended candle started a fire at a home on Arkwright Street near Maryland Avenue.
Ker Lor and her children became trapped in the home that was engulfed in flames and heavy smoke. The children were 1 to 6 years old and included a set of twins. Lor's husband, Pa Cheng Vang, was at work.
Ryks forced his way into the home as Conlin prepared a firehose. In the first bedroom, Ryks felt around and found a child on a bed, who he carried outside to turn over for care. He went back into the same room, encountered a bunkbed and found another child who he carried outside.
'With water on the fire, Conlin peeled off and began to search, when he found a child in another bedroom and carried the individual outside,' Firehouse Magazine said in the commendation. 'He continued to search. Instincts kicked in, and he unraveled a blanket and found another child, who he brought to medics outside.'
Ryks went back again to the room where he found two children and located another child. A firefighter and captain found the sixth child and Lor.
The two firefighters have also been recognized locally, with the MN 100 Club presenting First Responder of the Year Awards to them in St. Paul in November.
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12-06-2025
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St. Paul firefighters nationally recognized for carrying kids from house fire
Two St. Paul firefighters have been recognized nationally with an award of valor. Firefighters Jacob Ryks and Mason Conlin found multiple young children in a burning home in Payne-Phalen last year and carried them out. 'Despite the valiant efforts,' four of the six children died, said the award from Firehouse Magazine. Two of the children and their mother survived. The Michael O. McNamee Award of Valor is named for a now-retired Worcester, Mass., fire department district chief. It 'reflects a larger mission about what it means to be brave in the face of danger,' according to the magazine. McNamee 'displayed great courage at the Worcester Cold Storage Warehouse Fire in December 1999, when he made the bold decision to stop additional Worcester firefighters from entering the building when there already were six lost inside.' It was the middle of the night on Jan. 3, 2024, when an unattended candle started a fire at a home on Arkwright Street near Maryland Avenue. Ker Lor and her children became trapped in the home that was engulfed in flames and heavy smoke. The children were 1 to 6 years old and included a set of twins. Lor's husband, Pa Cheng Vang, was at work. Ryks forced his way into the home as Conlin prepared a firehose. In the first bedroom, Ryks felt around and found a child on a bed, who he carried outside to turn over for care. He went back into the same room, encountered a bunkbed and found another child who he carried outside. 'With water on the fire, Conlin peeled off and began to search, when he found a child in another bedroom and carried the individual outside,' Firehouse Magazine said in the commendation. 'He continued to search. Instincts kicked in, and he unraveled a blanket and found another child, who he brought to medics outside.' Ryks went back again to the room where he found two children and located another child. A firefighter and captain found the sixth child and Lor. The two firefighters have also been recognized locally, with the MN 100 Club presenting First Responder of the Year Awards to them in St. Paul in November. Abigail R. Hall: Police use of military tools presents a growing danger Washington County Sheriff Dan Starry will not run for a third term 2 unidentified campers found dead on Isle Royale National Park Community memorial set for William 'Ike' Eickholt, found dead last winter Lakeville man sentenced in first wage theft criminal conviction in state
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St. Paul firefighter duo named "Firefighter of the Year" for heroic saves
ST. PAUL, Minn. — St. Paul Firefighters Jake Ryks and Mason Conlin aren't the type to crave the spotlight. In fact, in front of family, friends, coworkers, and city leaders Thursday, they chose instead to credit others. "I'm just a guy that came to work prepared to do my job," Ryks said. It was enough for St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter to acknowledge the humility in the room. "Our firefighters, our police officers, our paramedics, our first responders are the ones who run into a situation when everyone else is running away," Carter said. Despite Ryks and Conlin's humble nature, there was no denying why the crowd was there: to honor two brave firefighters forever entwined with one of the city's most unforgettable tragedies. On Jan. 3, Ryks and Conlin had only a vague knowledge of who each other was. Conlin had only joined the department eight months prior, and the two didn't work together much. Then the call came in for a house fire on the city's east side. The two were there before reinforcements, but knew there were people inside the home. "I have a job to do, I've been trained very well to do it, I show up, and I go down the list, 1,2, 3, 4. Everything is mission focused. Everything is, we've trained for this exact moment," Ryks said. They went into the home multiple times, pulling six children and their mother to safety. "Right before I was going to leave, I Facetimed my wife and my son was there – I just broke down," Ryks said. "Obviously that night, as the dust settled, it was apparent that something extraordinary had occurred." Dozens of first responders worked to save the seven. Ultimately, four of the children did not survive. "Very much a defining moment for our city – very much a defining moment for me. Very much a defining moment for the St. Paul Fire Department," Carter said. Ryks and Conlin stayed connected with the family well beyond the call. "We were heavily invested in this family's journey. It wasn't over that day for us. It was following the stories, the recoveries. Unfortunately, the funerals, but we were grieving with the family." Thursday, the two received the honor of "Firefighter of the Year" – given by the MN 100 Club. The two were chosen from a pool of firefighters from across the state. "I feel really out of place in some ways getting the award. I did exactly what my job is to do," Ryks said. "Whatever the training is, whatever the extra is to make me more equipped to do my job, it's going to be worth it, because we can actually see the tangible benefit in my job."
