Instead Of Flames, Tulsa Firefighters Prevent Attempted Burglary

Tuesday, what started as a regular day on the job for a group of Tulsa firefighters took an interesting turn when they noticed a man in the parking lot acting suspiciously.

Like most firehouses, it’s a tight-knit group at station 16. Tuesday afternoon, one of the guys had his personal truck broken into and to make sure the suspect didn’t get away, they all jumped into action.

2/2/2016 Related Story: Tulsa Firefighters Catch Man Breaking Into Truck Outside Station

“My truck is parked over there and there were ten or 15 of us doing our testing,” said firefighter Kyle Younger.

It was then that one of Younger's fellow firefighters noticed someone suspicious walking through the parking lot.

When Younger got to his truck, he noticed the door was open. He said when he tried to get 23-year-old Chance Barnhart's attention, he ran.

“I had to run like 150 yards. I was tired, but in the back of my mind I heard the ‘Bad Boys’ song from COPS, it kept me motivated,” Younger laughed.

A little humor always helps in these situations, but the group of firefighters wasn't going to let him handle it alone.

Firefighter Jacob McDaniel said, “I didn't know what they were running for. I saw that they were going so I was going to go with them, that’s our thing.”

And the team at Station 16 said they are just glad nobody was hurt.

“I feel fortunate we were able to catch him and he is not going to break into anyone else’s car tonight,” Younger said.

He said Barnhart had a baton in his jacket.

“So that made me nervous. Luckily no guns or knives, I got lucky,” Younger said. “It could've gone a lot of different ways.”

The best news is that everything was still inside Younger's truck.

Barnhart faces a count of attempted burglary to a vehicle and possession of a controlled drug.