It was the day before Thanksgiving when 21-year-old Byron Campbell was driving past an apartment complex in Dallas to find the building on fire.
He stopped and jumped out of his car and ran toward the complex screaming and banging on doors to tell the residents to get outside.
When Byron heard the screams of a baby and a mother yelling for help he didn’t hesitate to jump into action. What he did after has meant many now regard him as a hero.
“The young mother was holding her baby and yelling, ‘Can somebody catch my baby?’” Campbell told Dallas News. “I just said, ‘Trust me, I’ll catch her!’”
@DallasFireRes_q has extinguished the fire on Ferguson Rd, but the real heroes did their work before hand, as civilians and @DallasPD worked together to get residents to safety. 6 people, including a baby, jumped from the 3rd floor while they held mattresses on the ground. pic.twitter.com/gBW42MfuRA
— DALLAS FIRE-RESCUE (@DallasFireRes_q) November 21, 2018
Shuntara Thomas put her trust in this stranger and dropped her crying baby girl into Byron’s arms.
“I didn’t want my daughter to lose her life,” Suntara later told KXAS. “He told me: ‘Just trust me. I got her, I got her.’ So without even thinking, I just dropped her.”
Byron recalled what was going through his head as the baby was thrown toward him: “My first reaction was, ‘Don’t let this baby hit the ground,’” he said.
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Campbell, who is not a resident of the building, safely caught the baby, Kirsten, in his arms. But without giving it a second thought he handed the baby to a woman standing nearby and continued his rescue mission.
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“It was terrifying,” said Shuntara Thomas, according to USA Today. “I didn’t know if I was going to come down with her or if that would be the last time that I was holding my child.”
Shuntara told KDFW how grateful she was: “I do thank him because without him my child’s life would not have been saved,” she said. “As long as I got my family, I’m good.”
Thankfully no lives were lost in this fire which has displaced more than 40 people; three people were injured, including a firefighter who suffered burns, authorities say. Shuntara and her daughter were treated at a local hospital for non-threatening injuries.
The American Red Cross is assisting the residents and working to find them shelter. Find out more in the video below.
WARNING: The following video contains vulgar language that some viewers may find offensive.
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The selfless acts of strangers helps restore my faith in humanity. Please share this inspirational story with your friends and family.
