On Oct. 2, while driving in his car, Chris Esteves saw a house burning.
He stopped his car, got out and ran inside.
Amazingly — he was one of many.
Esteves, Jennifer Barnum, Ansonia police officers Philip Landona, Jr., Edward Magera, Bernard Okesenberg and Ansonia firefighter Judd Blaze pulled a badly injured Laura McMichael, 81, out of the inferno.
Her husband, Rufus, died from smoke inhalation. Laura died Nov. 30.
The large fire on Fifth Street was tragic — and the grieving started on the sidewalk, with city police Chief Kevin Hale quietly breaking the news to the McMichael’s relatives.
It also brought out the best in people, from the firefighters to the crowds of people who gathered near the scene, eager to share stories about the McMichaels, who were staples of the tightly knit neighborhood.
“He’s a great, positive influence for kids in the neighborhood. It’s a real tragedy for our neighborhood,” Robert Duffus told reporters of Rufus McMichael.
The efforts of Esteves and the others did not go unnoticed.
They were honored Dec. 16 with the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Brotherhood Committee’s “Everyday Hero Award.”
“You’ve gone above and beyond the call of duty and we recognize that,” Mayor James Della Volpe said during the ceremony.
