A young man studying to become a firefighter rescued his neighbor from a burning house by dragging him out of a small window, a gesture that will long be remembered by the couple who lost everything in the fire last week in Montreal. .
“If he hadn’t been there, only God knows what would have happened. I was told at the hospital that I had a narrow escape. There were lots of curious people gathered in front of the burning house, but this brave young man was the only one who came to help me get out, ”says Jean-Pierre Caron, still in shock.
Shortly after noon last Thursday, a fire broke out insidiously in his residence in the Ville-Émard district. His spouse, Sophie Rodier, managed to get out by crawling along the corridor invaded by thick smoke, she explains to the Log.
Jean-Pierre Caron was however stuck by the flames in a room. A crank window was his only hope, but he couldn’t squeeze through the small opening, he vaguely recalls.
By the window
Jeffrey Lu, who lives a stone’s throw away, was leaving his yard at the same time. He saw M.me Rodier outside who was in a panic in front of the window where his spouse was stuck.
The Fire Safety Technics student first tried to break the glass with a shovel, but was unsuccessful.
He then brought a rattan chair found nearby, which he climbed on to help his neighbor.
Erika Aubin / JdeM
The rattan chair that Jeffrey Lu used to help his neighbor.
“I pulled him hard, but he was semi-unconscious. We ended up taking his first leg out of the window, so I was able to push him by the buttocks, ”he explains.
The 20-year-old sometimes had to stop to go and breathe fresh air further away.
Another neighbor helped Jeffrey Lu carry Mr. Caron further from the flames once he managed to pull him out. Good Samaritans also brought him a blanket and slippers.
“I thanked him maybe a dozen times, but words failed me. I was so overwhelmed by what had just happened, but I am very grateful, ”drops Sophie Rodier.
Erika Aubin / JdeM
The house destroyed by fire, in the Ville-Émard district.
Courtesy
Damage in the bathroom.
Her partner was taken to hospital, where he underwent a battery of tests after inhaling a lot of smoke.
“I had burnt hair, eyebrows and beard hair from the heat. It was a matter of minutes and I might not have made it. The oxygen level in my blood was terribly low,” said Mr. Caron, clearing his throat on the phone.
The good choice
These events confirmed to Jeffrey Lu that he had chosen the right job: “We do all kinds of exercises at school to learn how to manage our stress, but I am proud of my reaction in a real situation”, confides- he.
“The principle that someone in danger can call [le 911] and that I come urgently to help them, that’s what motivates me. I want to save people and make a change on the planet, ”continues the one who will finish the first year of his CEGEP program in a few weeks.
A fundraising campaign on the GoFundMe site has been created for the affected couple.