A man from Washington is being celebrated as a hero after he bravely ran into a burning house to save his eight-year-old niece.
Reports say that 20-year-old Derrick Byrd got second and third-degree burns on his face, back, and arms because he rushed into the house when he realized his niece was stuck inside.
In an interview with KOMO-TV, he shared: “Even though I got burnt, I really didn’t care, though. I’d rather get burnt than her. She’s young. She’s still got a lot of stuff going for her. She’s a good kid.”
The fire happened in a home in Aberdeen, Washington, and it’s thought to have started while Byrd and six other family members were there, including his sister, Kayla, and her three kids.
Byrd caught his nephews, Junior and Royce, when they jumped out of a window on the second floor. But his eight-year-old niece Mercedes was too scared to jump after seeing Kayla fall from the roof.
Without hesitating, Byrd ran back into the house to save her. In just moments, he could feel the flames burning him.
“I could feel it burning me,” he said.
“I got her and took my shirt off and put it around her face so she wouldn’t breathe in any smoke and I just carried her out as fast as I could.
True hero
Additionally, even though he got hurt, Byrd mentioned he would repeat his actions if necessary.
“I would rush back in there and do it again, even if I got hurt more or even died.”
When people called him a hero, he humbly responded: “I can’t call myself a hero. I just thought about my niece and nephews, and I wasn’t going to let them die.”
What a genuine hero Derrick Byrd truly is. In moments like that, people’s true colours are shown, and Derrick can certainly be proud of his.
Share this story to pay tribute to a real life hero, and to wish him a speedy recovery.
