Derrick Byrd, a 20-year-old uncle, has proved he will go to any extent when it comes to family. When the Byrd family house in Aberdeen was engulfed in flames, six family members were trapped inside. Because of Derrick, all of them are alive today. The young uncle first ran out of the house when he heard the children screaming “fire, fire.” He caught his two nephews Junior and Rory as they jumped from a window on the second floor. The mother of the children, Kayla (Derrick’s sister), slipped while trying to escape, falling on the ground. This scared her daughter Mercedes who instead of jumping, stepped back further into the house on fire. Derrick said: “She was screaming my name. So I wasn’t just going to let her sit there. I wasn’t going to let my niece die.”

Derrick ran into the house despite it being almost fully on fire. He pushed on and managed to find his crying niece. He then wrapped her face with his shirt and ran out of the house as fast as he could carrying her. Derrick who had third and second degree burns all over his face, back and arms, was airlifted to the hospital along with two of the children. Despite his severe injuries, what he had to say was incredibly touching: “Even though I got burnt, I really didn’t care. I’d rather get burnt than her. She’s young. She’s still got a lot of stuff going for her. She’s a good kid.”

When called a hero, he said: “I can’t say a hero. I’d just say for my niece and nephews that I wasn’t going to let them die. I would do it again. I really would. I don’t care. I really would. I’d run back in there and do it again even if I got burnt worse or died.” Friends and family have been supporting the family rebuild their lives, the only thing they’ve been left with, and that too because of Derrick.