Fern Ridge Trooper Jonathan Bailey said he was just doing his job when he rushed into a burning home to rescue an Albrightsville woman last year.

Bailey received the Pennsylvania State Police Medal of Honor last Friday, celebrating the strong character and heroic attitude that drove him to rescue an Albrightsville woman from a fire last summer.On July 27, 2016, Bailey responded to a dispatch call for the fire, and arrived at Sandra Knell's home at 277 Patten Circle before the fire and rescue teams."Initially I didn't see any fire, but there was smoke coming from the back doorway of the residence. The victim's two grandkids were at the front of the driveway. The grandkids got my attention and said 'Our grandma's inside,'" Bailey said.He quickly ran to the back of the house, where he found Knell's daughter. Noticing two large propane tanks on the side of the house, Bailey knew he could not wait for any help."The smoke was so thick you couldn't see inside the residence. The family told me how to get inside the house, but because of the smoke you couldn't see anything," Bailey recalled this week."I went in the first time, I was yelling for her, but I didn't think she could hear me too clearly. I had to run outside because of the smoke. I was tripping over the dining table, trying to walk my way into the house. I saw her sitting in the living room with her oxygen tank, and I saw the fire coming out of the kitchen."Bailey saw that the fire was quickly approaching Knell's oxygen tank, posing an immediate threat for an explosion. Bailey moved Knell past the kitchen, through the dining room, and out the back door."You could smell the heavy plastic smell coming out of the kitchen, I remember that distinctly," he said.At that point, fire and rescue teams arrived on the scene and helped move Knell from the residence. She was taken to Lehigh Valley Cedar Crest Emergency Room for treatment of burns and smoke inhalation, but reportedly made a full recovery.While Bailey required some medical attention as well, it did nothing to stop him from reporting for duty later that night."They gave me some oxygen and blood work to make sure I didn't have carbon monoxide poisoning. Once the doctor cleared me, I went back in for my midnight shift. The way I am, I was ready to get back into it. They offered me time off for recovery, but I enjoy the job so much, I was ready to get right back to work," he said.While Bailey has not kept in touch with the family, he did say that Knell's husband left him a thank you message in a voicemail which he has saved to this day.At the ceremony, Bailey said that he was he was taken aback by the recognition for his efforts, and that while he didn't do it for an award, he greatly appreciated the honor."It's representative of the values of the state police, what it takes to be a trooper," he said."It represents the values you should have to do this job, the actions you have to take on a daily basis. I was at a loss for words. To be among my peers, the colonel, the command staff, to be recognized by them is more than an honor. And to be recognized with some of the troopers that have come before me, that have taken those actions, it's more than an honor."