Firefighters thank 'heroic' neighbor for saving 5-year-old dropped from burning building's window

When Clifford Saint Jean was woken up on Saturday around midnight to the sound of fire, he sprang to action and did his best to save people who were trapped inside. Inside the second floor of the Boston apartment building, where the fire broke out, there was a woman with her two children. Saint Jean grabbed a mattress from his backyard, placed it outside the burning building's window and called out to the woman. "Come down, come down," he said he called to them, according to NBC. He assured the mother that he was "down there to carry them" and not to feel scared, according to NBC Boston.

Saint Jean caught the 5-year-old when the mother dropped the child, then the mom and her teen both leaped to safety as well. The mom was naturally overcome with emotion and told Saint Jean, "Thank you, you saved my life, you saved my family's life." He is now being hailed as a hero by the Boston Fire Department, which responded to the fire shortly after midnight. In a tweet, the department wrote praising Saint Jean: "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."

Five adults and four kids safely left the building, according to fire officials. The Red Cross of Massachusetts is assisting those who have been displaced in finding new accommodation. Two firemen with minor injuries sustained while combating the blaze were taken to a nearby hospital by Boston EMS. The cause of the fire is still being investigated. A $1 million damage estimate was made for the structure. Officials said that "radiant heat from the volume of fire" had also melted the siding on a nearby building.  

“It’s hard to see that anything would be able to be recovered," neighbor Isaac Blodgett said, referring to the damage. Some of the other neighbors of the family are glad to see that the mom and her kids are fine. Aguiles Romeus, a mother of two, expressed that the family was "lucky to get out safely." “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.

Good Samaritans like Clifford are rare. Such acts of kindness bring hope and a smile to many. In a similar tale from July, a pizza delivery person in Indiana risked his life to save five children from a blazing house.

When Nicholas Bostic, 25, was passing, he noticed a house on fire. He entered the house through the back door into the black smoke, saving four children, ages 1 to 18, before returning to save the fifth child. To save the 6-year-old, he sprang through a window while carrying the child and used his body to break the fall. LAPD praised Bostic's actions and he was recognized by Lafayette's mayor. "Nicholas Bostic's heroic actions saved lives. His selflessness during this incident is inspiring, and he has impressed many with his courage, tenacity, and steadfast calmness in the face of such perilous danger. The Lafayette Police Department and the Honorable Mayor Tony Roswarski are eternally grateful for Nicholas' intervention and would like to publicly recognize him for his actions," said LPD in a statement.