By Chris Goldberg, Phillylacrosse.com – Posted 12/18/24
Logan Byers can thank his father and – more importantly, his dogs – for leading him to become a volunteer firefighter for the Elkins Park Fire Company.
“My dad got me into it 5 years ago,’ said the Capital University (OH) junior defenseman from Cheltenham High. “Every time we walked the dogs we saw signs (for volunteering) and he’d say, ‘You should do that!’
“I thought, ‘Why not?’ So I signed up and I loved it. It’s the adrenaline rush; I love the feeling when a call comes in. It’s kind of like playing lacrosse – when you get the ball. It’s that feeling.
“But I just like helping people.”
On Dec. 1, Byers felt the adrenaline and the need to help, for sure. His company responded to an active twin home fire in the LaMott section of Cheltenham Township. When Byers’ company truck arrived, the occupants were out, but he went in to help put out the fire on the second floor.
Then, things got really hot.
“In the process of putting the fire out, I felt the heat around me build up as I advanced down the hallway; when I opened the nozzle to cool it down, the water hit the wall, and the steam built up and burned me.”
Byers sustained some 2nd-degree burns on his neck and his left ear, and 1st-degree burns on his neck, back, right ear, and left arm. He was first taken to Abington Jefferson Hospital and then airlifted to Jefferson’s downtown hospital. He spent 3 days in a hospital bed and needed surgery to repair some of the burns (all occupants of the house exited safely or sustained minor injuries).
Byers explained that steam that hot can cause burns right through the firemen’s gear.
Byers fortunately, has been a quick healer. His bandages were all removed in the past few days, and he has received the OK to begin workouts as he gears for the 2025 season. Last year he was a part-time start on a 9-9 team that has high expectations for the Ohio Athletic Conference race.
Byers – majoring in Mathematics and minoring in Physics – had been home for the Thanksgiving break and was supposed to return to Columbus for three finals. Fortunately, his grades were good enough that he was exempted by his professors from taking all finals.
Also, shortly after the incident, Byers was named his company’s “Firefighter of the Year.”
More good news: Byers’ swift recovery shocked his doctors and he is cleared to begin fighting fires again starting on New Year’s Day.
Now, he can focus on lacrosse. Last year Capital went 7-2 in the OAC and reached the league semifinals, bowing to Baldwin Wallace, 16-13.
“We went 9-9 overall last year but our out-of-conference schedule was rough,” said Byers, who was responsible for re-starting the Cheltenham boys’ program his senior year when he helped recruit most of the players and then recruited his mother, Jess, the girls’ coach, to coach the boys. “This year new class is really good and we are hoping we can overtake some of the teams that beat us last year.
“Our defense is looking really solid hard. I was training hard before the burns, but the recovery has gone so well. I am hoping to get a starting spot.”
