Temi, Civilian

"We were on a small side street in the West Village, easy to miss. Ever since the blackout it's been dark and quiet. But that night, I woke up to a glow coming through the window. The building across the street was on fire. There were a bunch of guys with trucks out front -- I thought they were trying to put it out. I knew people in that building, so I threw some clothes on and went outside.

“When I got closer, I realized the guys all had flamethrowers, propane tanks, welding gear… Then I saw they'd locked the front doors from the outside with chains and padlocks. They weren't trying to help. They wanted to burn the building down with everyone inside! Smoke was already filling the lobby, people were pounding on the doors to get out.

“They weren’t gonna last five minutes. If I was gonna help, I had to do it right now. So I ran around the back of the building to a narrow alley. The entrance to the basement garbage room was there -- the guys out front must’ve missed it in the dark, thank god. I opened it up and felt my way up the stairs to the lobby, could barely breathe or see anything, there was so much smoke. I rounded everyone up and led them out, quick as I could, then we all took off running. I had a two-year-old in one arm, a baby in the other. Blocks away you could still see the glow from the fire and the thick smoke unwinding into the night.

“By morning, we found our way to a JTF base that took us in. We all made it out OK. I can't stop thinking how lucky we are, how thankful, that light in my window woke me up."