Special Courage in Face of Fire

Two men in Garden Grove and one in Anaheim have displayed remarkable courage in rescuing people from fires. They provide examples of heroic acts by ordinary people.

Anaheim fire officials credit Dean E. Young with saving the life last week of a resident in the apartment complex where Young lives and works as a maintenance man. Twice Young tried to enter the apartment after hearing a fire alarm. Twice the heat drove him back. But after wrapping himself in a wet towel, Young got into the apartment and pulled out the 79-year-old resident, who was hospitalized for treatment of his burns.

Eight days earlier, Tan Dinh was taking an evening stroll in Garden Grove when he spotted a house on fire. Dinh rapped on a window to alert the mother and six children inside.

In an unfortunate example of many Orange County residents’ fear of crime, the mother, Maureen Castillo, said she thought someone was trying to break in.

Fortunately, Dinh was able to persuade Castillo of the danger. She passed her children through the window to him and then climbed out herself.

A neighbor, Lemont Larkins, saw the smoke and scaled a wall between two houses to sound the alarm.

Although his children urged him not to go near the fire, Larkins smashed in a window with his hand, cutting himself, and added his shout of warning to Dinh’s.

Few things are more fearsome than flames roaring out of control. Firefighters are trained to face the risks, but it takes special effort for neighbors to quench their fears and help rescue those in peril.