'I kicked the door in': Neighbor recounts rescue after teen spots house fire
A Long Island mother is recounting the terrifying moments she says she kicked in her neighbor's door and helped pull an elderly woman to safety as a fire tore through the home, after her teenage son spotted the flames and called 911.
Natechia Campbell-Moss told ABC News the fire started early Tuesday morning as her 15-year-old son Jovani was heading out to catch the school bus in Huntington, New York. When Jovani suddenly noticed the fire, he called his mom, who told him to call 911.
Campbell-Moss said she also ran outside and rushed to her neighbor's front door, banging and ringing the doorbell, but no one answered.
"I kept banging and banging and I kept kicking the door… I was able to kick the door. It kind of like opened a little bit," she recalled. "And then all of a sudden I saw her standing right behind the door in her foyer area. And she's like, 'What's going on?' I said, 'Your house is on fire.'"
She said the woman appeared disoriented and unaware of what was happening as smoke began filling the home.
"I grabbed her out because she was kind of, like, dazed because she didn't know what was going on," Campbell-Moss said.
The two made it outside safely, she said, but moments later they watched as the flames spread.
"We literally just stood there and watched her house burn down," she said.
Fire officials said crews were notified around 6:40 a.m. and arrived to find heavy fire.
"When we got there, that fire was consuming most of the house," Melville Fire Department Chief Donald Barclay told ABC News.
The homeowner was evaluated by EMS and was not injured, according to Barclay. The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Town of Huntington Fire Marshal. The fire is not considered suspicious at this time, he said.
Barclay said the teen's decision to call 911 made a difference.
"A lot of people see something happening and they look the other way, they don't do anything because they don't want to get involved," he said. "So it's nice when somebody actually does the right thing. And this kid definitely did the right thing."
As for her neighbor, Campbell-Moss said the woman is now staying with family but is still in shock after losing her home.
"She was just very appreciative," she said. "She kept thanking me. And I kept telling her, you know, 'It's OK. It's OK,' but she's still very devastated … I had some family members of hers reach out to me on Facebook thanking me as well. It's just something that I would hope they would do for us if I was ever in a situation like that. You know what I mean?"
She said Jovani, who stayed on the phone with 911 while waiting for his school bus, is still processing everything but is doing fine.
Campbell-Moss said she hopes the experience serves as a reminder for people to learn "to live good with their neighbors" and look out for one another.
"Because they never know when they're gonna be placed in a situation like that where they're going to need help," she said. "So I would just hope that it's a lesson ... to just be aware … If you do see something suspicious going on, make a call, call 9-1-1."
