A quick-thinking couple who saw flames shooting from a Connecticut house as they drove by kicked in the door to save those sleeping inside.
Firefighters responded to a fire at 56 Laurel Street in Southington on Sunday. Officials said the fire appeared to have started in the garage of the house before quickly extending to the home, as well as the house next door.
By the time first responders arrived, those inside the home had already been rescued.
"We came around the corner and saw the garage had been inflamed and it was already going into the house, so we parked the car and ran up to the door, kicked the door in and started pulling the husband out," Jaclyn Piccirillo, one of the rescuers, said.
Richard Piccirillo, a firefighter himself, and Jaclyn said their first reaction when they drove by was to immediately run inside and make sure everyone was out.
The Southington Fire Department said it appears the homeowners did not even realize anything was wrong until their door was kicked down by the Piccirillos.
"I think the husband thought we were robbing them because he was swinging at us," Jaclyn said.
But that didn't stop the rescue. Without hesitation, the Piccirillos rushed to the home next door.
"As soon as we got him out we went next door because the guy's house was on fire and we went straight in and pulled him out as well," she said.
Without these two good Samaritans coming to the rescue, the situation could have ended a lot worse.
"I feel glad that I was here, did my job to get them out. "
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Photo Credit: Donna Voisine