VIDEO: Officials say two people were rescued by firefighters and taken to the hospital following a church building fire in Philadelphia’s Grays Ferry section.
Flames broke out just after 7 a.m. on Wednesday inside an administrative building connected to the Abundant Life church on South 26th and Tasker streets.
Officials say that before they arrived, Thomas Lewis, the pastor of the church, saw the smoke and tried to rush inside to save a female coworker and her elderly father.
“I tried. I did my best. I couldn’t get them. I couldn’t get to the third floor to get Mr. Ricky out. Firemen brought him out,” Lewis said.
He didn’t hesitate once he saw the smoke.
“My coworkers, my loved ones, I had to be there for them,” he added.
The elderly man was trapped on the second floor and rescued by firefighters. He was taken to the hospital in critical condition.
His daughter, a woman in her 50s, was also rescued by first responders. She is currently in stable condition.
WPVI-TV ABC 6 Philadelphia