“A National Guard soldier who was home for the holidays died while saving people from the massive apartment fire in the Bronx borough in New York City on Thursday night, according to several news reports.
Emmanuel Mensah, a 28-year-old who immigrated from Ghana five years ago, returned to his apartment for the first time after joining the Army a year ago, according to The New York Times. He was among the 12 people killed in the blaze that consumed an apartment building near the corner of East 187th Street and Prospect Avenue.
Mensah lived with friends of his father — a married couple and their four children. He got that family out of the burning building safely before pulling four more people from the fire, said Twum Bredu, his uncle who lived next door. Witnesses cited in the Times' report say Mensah disappeared after going back into the building to look for more victims.
"He brought four people out," Bredu told The Times. "When he went to bring a fifth person out, the fire caught up with him."
Stacey Delikat, a reporter with Fox 5 Television in New York tweeted about Emmanuel, the replies are more eloquent than I could ever be…
We await drumpf’s tweet honoring this fine young man, this immigrant to our shores who saved as many as eight people from the inferno in the Bronx.
We wait….and wait...and wait…
Private First Class Emmanuel Mensah did more to protect this country than you ever did, Mr. Bone Spur deferment….