Marine and former college wide receiver, Phillip Blanks of Arizona, caught a 3-year-old from a third-floor balcony, when an apartment was on fire.
“I’d seen the building was on fire and like my instinct kicked in immediately. With no hesitation, I just ran to the baby and caught him,” Blanks recalled.
Blanks caught the child, as the mother dropped the toddler from the third-floor.
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“I can definitely credit to the Marine Corps for instilling this good training in me to save a life,” he said. “I don’t see myself as a hero. A person trained to do my job is trained to protect people.”
Blanks played high school football at Kalamazoo Central High School in .
Michigan then Kalamazoo Valley College before heading to Saddleback College in Mission Viejo, California, according to USA Today.
Also, according to reports, the 8-year-old child was saved from the fire by a bystander, too.
D’Artagnan Alexander heard a scream on his way, when he was headed to work.
“I have a 3-year-old and a 9-year-old, so when I heard there were kids in there, that really hit my heart,” Alexander told the Post.
According to @12news, “The fire broke out at the apartment near 19th and Dunlap avenues on Friday and a woman was found dead by firefighters.” That woman was later identified as the mother, 30-year-old Rachel Long.
An 8-year-old girl and a 3-year-old boy were transported to the hospital in serious condition. They both suffered from burns, but they are expected to recover.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Condolences to the family.
See the heroic act below.
