Four firefighters immediately donned oxygen tanks and masks and climbed the ladder, back up into the burning building. I don't know how they managed to catch the cat. They carried him out wrapped in a bedspread. They may have thrown it over him, or he may have been too weakened by smoke inhalation to put up a fight. They gave him oxygen for a while, and soon, still gasping and dirty gray from smoke, he was resting safely in Mick's arms.
Carbon monoxide is one of the big killers in fires like that.
You can't see it, smell it, nor taste it, and it makes you sleepy. People and pets in burning buildings may pass out and die from carbon monoxide poisoning before the fire even reaches them. Red cells filled with carbon monoxide can't carry oxygen in or carbon dioxide out of the lungs, and it takes about four hours for it to finally wear off. Survivors of fires may have permanent brain damage from the carbon monoxide. Their heart may not be able to pump blood adequately, and the lungs may be damaged more seriously than initially apparent, even with X-rays.