Who are Sergio Rivera and James Galanos? NY cops risk their lives to save trapped pet cat Tiger, dog JJ from fire
A New York Police officer duo from Suffolk County Police Department showed extraordinary courage and selflessness as they went into burning house to rescue the pet animals trapped inside.
Officers Sergio Rivera and James Galanos proved themselves true heroes as they did not hesitate to go back inside the burning house for the pet cat and dog, after they helped two young boys escape from the fire.
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How did Rivera and Galanos save the animals?
Around 3 pm on Friday, March 5, Suffolk County Police was alerted by calls over the police airwaves, reporting a fire on Oak Street in Central Islip. The caller informed the police that there were children trapped inside the property on fire. Responding to the call, Suffolk County police officers Sergio Rivera and James Galanos promptly headed to the scene, and arrived at the two-story house on Oak Street shortly after 3 pm. They were the first responders at the scene.
Upon reaching, Rivera and Galanos found two young boys exiting the front door. The brothers, aged 11 and 13 years, were trapped inside the house when the fire broke out, a little after their mother went out to the nearby store. Though the boys managed to escape safely, they were in agony as they told the police that their dog and cat were still inside. "My dog and my cat are still in there," one of the boys told Rivera and Galanos, while crying hysterically and screaming in fear.
The officer duo immediately guided the boys to a safe place across the street and decided to go back inside the burning house to look for the pets — a 2-year-old male Chihuahua named JJ and a 2-year-old male cat named Tiger. Though the kids said that the dog was in a cage in the living room, the officers failed to see clearly in the smoke. "Because of the smoke, we didn't see it. And then I heard the whimpering," recalled Rivera, while speaking to Newsday.
He immediately picked up the cage with JJ inside and together with Galanos, safely escorted the dog outside. But the cat Tiger was still trapped inside. The officers saw him before but he ran away from the smoke towards the basement in fear. Recalling that the cat was "too quick", Rivera shared that shortly afterward, Galanos went inside to look for Tiger. He finally found the cat in the basement and safely brought him out.
Who are Sergio Rivera and James Galanos?
34-year-old Sergio Rivera grew up in Brentwood in the Third Precinct as a child and later joined the police department with the aim to serve people. The 34-year-old has been a cop with Suffolk County Police for one and a half years now.
Rivera was overwhelmed by the gratitude of the young boys towards him and Galanos, after they rescued their beloved pets. "It's what I joined for. This is what I wanted to do, be helpful, make someone's day," Rivera said.
James Galanos is a colleague of Rivera who showed immense courage as he went back in to look for the cat, while the firefighters were still trying to bring the blaze under control. Later, the boys sincerely thanked him for taking the risk and rescuing Tiger to safety. It was later found that the front portion of the house had sustained considerable damage from the fire, whose source is being investigated.