 "Photo: Chris Kominczak")
 "Photo: Jordan Gomez")
A pair of strangers risked their lives to save five UT students, whose West Campus house erupted in flames Thursday morning.
The two-alarm blaze destroyed the five-bedroom house on 2800 San Pedro St. and damaged the adjacent duplex to the south. Tenants of both residences exited without harm, said Battalion Chief Palmer Buck, an Austin Fire Department spokesman.
Maintenance workers Jimmy Williams and John Black said they noticed a small fire on a couch on the house's front porch while driving through the neighborhood. Black said he thought the flame was an open barbecue pit at first.
"It was real small," Williams said. "John said 'Is that a fire?'"
The two said instinct then took over as Black raced into the burning building and Williams called 911.
"I went up there the first time and just yelled, 'Fire! Everyone needs to get out of the house!'" Black said. "I talked to one guy; he said there were four others in there."
After a few minutes, he said none of the occupants had exited the home, so he returned inside.
"The fire was getting so bad I ran back in, went upstairs," Black said. "The upstairs was starting to fill with smoke. At that point, I started to beat on doors telling everybody to get up."
"They started grabbing laptops. One guy grabbed his TV," Black said. "I don't think they understood that the whole front of the house was fully engulfed in flames. I would say from seeing [the fire] from start to finish, if your house catches fire you don't have time to get
anything out."
Economics junior and house occupant Mason Thomas said by the time they exited the house, most of the front had caught flame.
"We ran out through the flames," Thomas said. "We were just trying to get out."
Buck said officials received the emergency call at 9:08 a.m. and responded within four minutes. It took 16 units several hours to put out the blaze. Structural instability and power lines in front of the house forced fire fighters to take a defensive strategy. The fire's heat caused parts of the tenants' vehicles to melt.
Firefighters estimated the total damage to both structures at $500,000, plus another $250,000 for the contents inside. Officials did not know if working smoke detectors were present inside, Buck said.
The outdoor couch caught fire from cigarette embers the night before, but the residents said they thought it was extinguished before going to sleep, according to the incident report.
"Upholstery and furniture fires are some of the most stubborn fires there are," Buck said. "If there is ever a doubt, they need to call the fire department. Even if you think you have it out, you probably don't. We see this time and time again."
Williams and Black said they refuse to be called heroes.
"I feel lucky that we were there," Black said. "If they would have been in bed another 30 seconds, I don't know if they would have woke up."
Buck said without the two good samaritans, the students might not have gotten out.
"That fire was very quick-moving," Buck said. "The people owe a debt of gratitude to the passersby. I would say that they did a very good job."
Additional reporting by Amanda DeBard
and Caroline Page
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