After Saintjen was awakened by the sound of fire, he not only helped the mother escape but also caught her 5-year-old child when she dropped the child from the window.
A Boston man is being praised for his heroic actions and swift thinking, which led to him rescuing a woman and her two children from a burning building. Had neighbor Clidfod Saintjen not intervened, the mom and her two kids may not have made it through this ordeal.
In the early hours of September 3, 2022, a fire broke out in a residential building on Delford Street in Roslindale, Massachusetts, threatening the lives of a woman and her two children, a 5-year-old and a teenager, according to NBC Boston. Saintjen was awakened by the sound of the fire and soon realized that the mother and her kids were trapped by the "heavy blaze" while on the second floor of their building, the Boston Fire Department said in a statement.
Here's a feel-good story about a real life hero:
— AZP (@ZPFleming) September 3, 2022
A Roslindale man helped his neighbors escape a fire after midnight. He set up a mattress outside a 2nd floor window so a mother and her 2 kids could jump out, and even caught the kid Mom threw to him!
💪🔥https://t.co/xfQJicA1pe
Saintjen took a mattress from his garden and placed it beneath a window of the burning building, reports TODAY. Then, he shouted at the mother to get her kids out of the window. "Don't be scared ... I'm down there to carry them," Saintjen told the mom.
The mother slowly dropped her youngest child from the window and Saintjen promptly caught the child after which the mom and her older child jumped out the window. Saintjen then stated that the mother was understandably emotional, telling him, "Thank you, you saved my life, you saved my family's life."
But despite saving lives, Saintjen told The Boston Globe, "I don't feel like a hero."
"A heroic job by the next-door neighbor to save a mother and her 2 children who were trapped on the 2nd floor by heavy fire at the 3 alarm fire on Delford St. He put a mattress down for them to jump as he caught the 5-year-old that the mother dropped out the window to him," the Boston Fire Department said in a tweet on September 3, 2022.
Neighbor helps mother, two children escape second floor of burning home in Rosindale https://t.co/rBuL4gPBmx
— The Boston Globe (@BostonGlobe) September 3, 2022
According to fire officials, nine people were displaced from the building, including five adults and four children. The building's damages are estimated to be about $1 million. According to inspectors, the siding of a neighboring structure was also melted.
"It’s hard to see that anything would be able to be recovered. Hope they were OK," Isaac Blodgett, a neighbor, said. Another neighbor, Aguiles Romeus, a mother of two, said the family was fortunate to escape unharmed. "You’ve got your life, got your kids. You always want to protect them. Now you're in the fire. You just don't know what's going to happen in the next minute," she said.
The woman had been staying in that home for 18 years, with her kids, she shared. Their cat, who sustained injuries from the fire is being treated at a local vet for smoke inhalation, states CBS News.
A heroic job by the next door neighbor to save a mother and her 2 children who were trapped on the 2nd floor by heavy fire at the 3 alarm fire on Delford st. He put a mattress down for them to jump as he caught the 5 year old that the mother dropped out the window to him. pic.twitter.com/1XLevl5OD6
— Boston Fire Dept. (@BostonFire) September 3, 2022
According to Brian Alkins, Public Information Officer for the Boston Fire Department, firemen were able to extinguish the flames within 30 minutes. "After searching the building, they found every occupant was out safely," Alkins said.
"Firefighters are doing well. They were minor injuries. They should be released shortly," he further added. "The neighbor next door was very heroic in saving the occupants trapped on the second floor, catching the mother and son from the second floor."
The cause of the fire is being investigated and the Red Cross is helping the people who were displaced.
References:
https://twitter.com/BostonFire/status/1565953358975860742
https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/roslindale-home-fire-delford-street-boston-fire-department/
Cover Image Source: Twitter | Boston Fire Dept.
