Estimated read time: Less than a minute
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SILVER SPRING, Md. (AP) — A Maryland police officer who was the first to respond to a gas explosion and fire that killed seven people and injured dozens of others at an apartment complex last year has received his department's highest honor.
Montgomery County Officer Jeff Hughes received the department's Medal of Valor Wednesday for his bravery.
Hughes was working off duty for the Flower Branch apartments in Silver Spring the night of Aug. 10 when the explosion occurred. Hughes ran to help a family out of the rubble and then went to adjacent buildings to pull fire alarms and get more than 100 people out.
Searchers eventually recovered seven bodies from the rubble left behind by the explosion, which was caused by a natural gas leak and shook homes more than a mile away.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
