This is the moment a homeless hero saves dozens of stray dogs from an animal refuge as its building went up in flames.
Hero Saves 25 Dogs from Burning Building pic.twitter.com/NlMDNN7O3r
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The rescuer – named in La Victoria, Peru, as Sebastian Arias – climbed up the outside of the inferno when he heard the dogs howling in terror on the top floor.
The footage – recorded as he saved the last pup from the flames – shows him inching along a ledge as flames lick the windows from inside the building.
Sebastian later described the extraordinary rescue as “terrifying”.
After scrambling onto the roof he manages to grab the terrified dog and throw him down to be caught safely in a makeshift safety net.
Then the climbs down to a balcony rail to a huge roar of applause as rescued raise a ladder to help bring him down.
Local media later reported that hero Sebastian had saved 25 strays from certain death.
The fire is believed to have started in a recycling centre on the ground floor underneath the refuge.
Amazingly Sebastian once had a job there – reports local newspaper Latina Noticias – and knew the building layout.
He said: “When I saw the fire, my mind went to my wife and our beloved pet.
“The thought of my dog perishing in such a horrific way, hearing its cries…it was unbearable.”
He added that the last dog that he rescued was the worst affected and by the time got to it it had already been singed by the fire.
He admitted: “The final rescue was terrifying. The fire spreading, and the dog was already burned. I gripped its neck and snout and got it out of there,” he narrated.
Although the rescue mission was a success, the fire was only brought under control after he spoke to several neighbouring properties and left many people homeless.
