Roxbury Boy Reunites With Firefighter Who Made Life-Saving Catch
ROXBURY (CBS) – Boston Mayor Tom Menino stopped by Engine 42 and Rescue 2 in Roxbury Wednesday afternoon to thank all the firefighters who saved several people in a 6-alarm fire Monday.
But he was upstaged by a little boy and the firefighter who saved him.
Lt. Glenn McGillivray and 6-year-old Xavier Lara met again for the first time since the fire.
When Lt. McGillivray saw Xavier arrive at his Egelston Square firehouse today, he picked him up, and told him, "This is your fire truck. This is your house. You lost your home, but this is your house. You can come here anytime. You're one of us."
WBZ-TV's Karen Anderson reports
He then presented Xavier with a shirt and hat.
When firefighters arrived at their burning building early Monday morning, Xavier's mother was dangling him out of the window calling for someone to catch him. Ladder trucks were on the way, but firefighters were afraid Xavier's grandmother wouldn't be able to hold him long enough.
So Lt. McGillivray gave her the go ahead. She pried Xavier's fingers loose from the window sill. His legs were dangling, and he went down three stories into Lt. McGillivray's arms below.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Bernice Corpuz reports
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Firefighters also rescued Xavier's grandmother, Judith Lamb, and several other people from the fire.
Lamb says, "I was praying don't let this man miss the catch. Don't less this man miss the catch." Today when she saw McGillivray, she hugged him, and didn't want to let him go. "I was so happy in my heart to see him. Really, very, very happy."
The man charged with starting it, 28-year-old Mohamed Abdul Jabar of Medford , was arraigned Wednesday afternoon in his hospital bed at Massachusetts General Hospital, where he's being treated for burns.
Lt McGillivray said he's grateful for his fellow firefighters who helped with the rescues, and says it meant a lot to see a smile on the face of the little boy he saved. "It's a good feeling. Good to see him smiling and happy and I hope he's able to get thought everything he's gone through."
WBZ-TV's Karen Anderson contributed to this report.
