Video: Stranger carries man to safety as his home goes up in flames

Footage shot by a passerby shows the moment an ill man was carried out of his burning home by a complete stranger

Kiran Moodley
Monday 20 October 2014 12:01 BST
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Footage shot by a passerby shows the moment an ill man was carried out of his burning home by a complete stranger.
Footage shot by a passerby shows the moment an ill man was carried out of his burning home by a complete stranger.

Sometimes the kindness of strangers can be quite breathtaking.

An unidentified man was labelled a hero at the weekend after he carried a man out of a burning building in Fresno, California.

Beth Lederach, who was driving in the area, pulled over when she saw smoke coming from a housing complex and called 911. Firefighters were dispatched to the blaze at 8:14 on Saturday morning, according to The Fresno Bee.

However, before the firemen arrived, Lederach filmed the scene before her unfolding.

Lederach told The Fresno Bee, "I was pretty shaken up about it. As I got out of the car, this woman came up with this baby and said, 'My dad is in there! My dad is in there!' I didn’t know what to do. I felt so helpless."

As Lederach comforted the woman, an unknown man went inside the building and came out a little while later with the elderly man. It was reported that the rescued individual had been connected to an oxygen tank for respiratory problems. After he is rescued, it is clear that the man is having difficulty breathing as he recovers from the fire on the pavement.

"I couldn’t believe it," Lederach told The Fresno Bee.. "I was so relieved, I just wanted to cry."

The rescued man was then taken to a hospital for smoke inhalation, according to Kris Townsend, a spokesman for the Fresno Fire Department. Townsend added that the blaze was under control within 23 minutes of the firemen arriving at the scene. The fire team arrived at the fire five minutes after the 911 call was made.

"We try to get to it (a fire) within four or five minutes — that’s a good response," said Townsend.

Despite the heroics of the stranger, Townsend said: "No. 1: Get everyone out of the house and call 911 as soon as possible because the fire can progress rapidly."

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