WINSTON SALEM, N. C. -
A teller with Piedmont Aviation Credit Union for the last year and a half, Padgett recently took the initiative to warn apartment residents of a fire resulting in more than 20 people, and a newborn baby, safely evacuating the building. Padgett, 21, and her fiancé James McCoy were relaxing at home when a severe thunderstorm hit their area. One lightning strike was a little too close for comfort.
"I was sitting in my living room. It shook our building and I looked out our back window," she said.
The City of Winston Salem uses "high pressure sodium" lamps that create a yellow glow over sidewalks. Padgett said from a distance she couldn't determine if the apartment building behind her was on fire or if it was a streetlight. Padgett and her fiancé decided to investigate, and to their alarm, learned it was fire. Padgett said lightning had hit the roof and set it aflame. Even though she was 20 weeks pregnant at the time, Padgett didn't think twice about what she needed to do.
"We just started knocking on doors," Padgett said.
Padgett said occupants of the burning apartment didn't know they were in danger. One man was sitting down for dinner as his brother, sister-in-law and the newborn baby were about to turn in for the evening. All four safely evacuated the building. Eventually, the apartment directly under the lightning strike was destroyed with the first floor unit underneath receiving extensive smoke damage.
"It was unreal, like a movie. I guess it's good to know I can react under pressure. It's still kind of shocking," she said. "I forgot I was pregnant. I was concerned with getting everybody out."
Padgett said as people walked away from the burning structure the roof collapsed due to the fire. No one was hurt during the fire and firefighters quickly responded to contain the flames. Padgett said she's received plenty of e-mails from managers and co-workers saying how proud they are of her efforts, with some Piedmont Aviation employees singing the words of Mariah Carey's "Hero" to her or Bette Midler's "Wind Beneath My Wings."
When asked by the Credit Union Journal if her fire rescue actions reflect her attitude on working at $230 million credit union, Padgett promptly responded:
"Yeah, people helping people," she said.
