Bravery awards: officers recognised after hotel blaze

19 February 2026

PCs Robert (Rob) Hart and Sanam (Sammy) Hussain put their own lives at risk when they responded to an incident in which a suicidal man had set fire to a hotel room in which he was staying.

Now, as a result of their selfless actions, they have been presented with the West Midlands Police Federation Bravery Award for Birmingham #2 LPA which was sponsored by Serve and Protect credit union.

“The award came a bit out of left field as I actually asked not to be nominated in the aftermath of the incident as it’s still a very raw event that I’m still coming to terms with. It took a lot of cajoling and support from others to feel positive about accepting it,” Rob explained.

Recalling the incident, he said: “My first instinct with the job was that it was likely to be a faulty smoke alarm or a bin fire and it wasn’t until walking into the building that I actually got some scope on how serious the incident actually was.

“I honestly can’t say what I was thinking when I was inside the building or approaching the room where the fire was and I was making every move and action purely on instinct without conscious thought. I actually wasn’t thinking of myself at any point during what happened and was more concerned for Sammy than I was for myself.”

Worried

Sammy herself recalled: “I remember walking in and expecting someone to be barricaded inside a room, I never thought the hotel would be on fire. My first thoughts were there’s someone inside and we need to save them.

“I was worried for my colleague’s safety and he was worried for mine especially when the blaze was well established. We both risk assessed it well and communicated to each other to get others and ourselves out safely.

“What me and PC Hart did officers in our Force do daily and, if anything, some do better than us. I’m proud of us and every officer that puts themself forward to save life and limb.”

Arriving before the fire service, the brave officers went into the building, clearing rooms as they made their way to the fire.

On reaching the floor where the fire had been started, they became aware that it was well established and posed an imminent threat to residents. There was a ring of fire around the door to the man’s room so they forced entry to try to save his life.

Intense

Sadly, it was already engulfed in flames and the officers were hit by an intense ball of heat that forced them to withdraw but, despite the heat and smoke, they continued to evacuate people from the building, ensuring no other lives were lost.

Robert attended the awards with his partner, Charlotte, and said they both had a good evening, enjoying the opportunity to speak to the other nominees.

Sammy was joined by her husband, Bilal, and described it as an amazing evening.

“Receiving the award was the highlight of the night and I felt so honoured to have been recognised. It was a privilege to stand among other award-winners who I work side by side with daily,” she added. 

Robert, who is 28, joined the Force in 2021 having initially applied in 2019 after finishing university and having his start date delayed by the pandemic.

“I joined the police because I had never actually had any clear idea what I wanted to do but knew that I wanted to make a difference and be a positive influence on events around me,” he explained.

Response

During his career, he has had postings in Sandwell, Sutton Coldfield, C3, Handsworth and most recently Bournville.

Sammy meanwhile had always wanted to be a police officer. Now 36, she has four years’ service under her belt, having previously worked for a local authority for 16 years.

“It was always a dream to be a police officer and during Covid I decided it was a great time to sign up, a bit of a now or never moment. I have been on the front-line response for about two years now,” she said.

Reflecting on the incident that led to the award, Robert acknowledged that it was all too easy for officers to just deal with traumatic and difficult incidents and then just carry on.

He said: “I didn’t take any time off after what happened because I didn’t think I was allowed to and I honestly should have taken the time because I never really took a chance to decompress and come to terms with the events of that evening until a lot later.

“TRIM processes are there, they are worth doing and having my TRIM process counsellor at the awards evening was really great for me as I don’t think I’d be at work without having gone through the process. If I could pass any advice to others it would be to make sure they’re looking after each other and checking on each other when these jobs happen because it’s very easy to put a brave face on it and soldier on.”