A Prince George’s County firefighter has earned a national award for saving a 4-year-old girl during a Hyattsville apartment fire. The Veterans of Foreign Wars has named Capt. George Flanagan III, a firefighter and medic, as the group’s emergency technician of the year for 2010. A Prince George’s County fire and emergency services spokesman said Flanagan is the first member of the department to win the VFW award at the national level.

Flanagan was honored for his efforts during a Feb. 26, 2010, fire at an apartment on the 3200 block of Toledo Place. Flanagan was among the first responders to arrive at the scene of the blaze. Amid thick smoke and flames, he rescued a young girl who was trapped in a rear bedroom of the burning apartment, the fire department said.