Neighbor helps Bridgeport family escape fire

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (WTNH) -- A quick thinking neighbor is being credited for rescuing two adults and two children from a burning Bridgeport home Sunday.

The fire broke out in the basement of 1372 Wood Avenue, filling the first floor with smoke. The family ran to the second floor bathroom for safety.

A neighbor saw the smoke and grabbed his own ladder and put it up against the house, allowing them to get out safely.

Fire officials credit him with helping save the family. It turns out he had been a trained as a fire fighter in his native El Salvador.

"We happy to save the life, thats what supposed to do you know," said the neighbor, Juan Carlos Saravia.

"When he saw the smoke the first thing he thought was to grab his own ladder and put it up to the window," Asst. Chief Dominick Carfi, Bridgeport Fire Department, said, "and without his quick thinking it might have been a little bit challenging for us on our arrival."

Credit is also due to the firefighters for pulling the family's pet rabbit out of the smoke filled house.

Investigators are trying to pinpoint what sparked the fire.