Neighbor comes to rescue of woman in burning Bronx apartment

MELROSE, Bronx (WABC) -- A neighbor came to the rescue when a fire broke out in a Bronx apartment building early Thursday.

He was able to pull a victim from her smoke-filled apartment, and firefighters were able to take it from there.

"I was coming out the chicken spot and I just saw the fire right there and I heard somebody screaming," said Jose Maldonado.

Maldonado was with friends before 3 a.m. when he saw fire coming from the Sherman Avenue building in the Melrose section.

"When we looked up to the third or the fourth floor, the windows blew out," said witness Joseph Rivera.

Jose immediately ran inside to the burning apartment on the fourth floor.

"I heard somebody screaming," he said. "I knew somebody was already there, so I kicked the door down."

Inside the apartment he found a woman on fire. Jose said he tried to pick her up but when he couldn't carry her, he began to pull the woman into a hallway.

"I grabbed her feet, I was like, I don't want this lady to die," he said.

Fire crews arrived and took over to care for the woman. Now Jose, who works at the neighborhood convenience store, is being hailed as a hero.

Even he admits, if it wasn't for his fast action, his neighbor might not be alive.

"She was not going to make it because she was already all burned up," said Maldonado.

The victim was rushed to the hospital, where she is in serious but stable condition.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.