Video: Man climbs down 19-storey building without safety gear to escape blaze

A man climbed several floors down the outside of a 19-storey building in Philadelphia to escape a fire that injured four residents and three police officers.

A 35-year-old man identified as Jermain took just three minutes to climb down to safety before being greeted by waiting police officers on the ground and walking away unharmed.

HIGH-RISE FIRE: A man is seen scaling down a 19-story apartment building after a fire in West Philadelphia.https://t.co/Rmujuv7vsb pic.twitter.com/2NsXXYgJVL

— Action News on 6abc (@6abc) July 19, 2019

According to Philadelphia Inquirer, the fire started at  trash room on the first floor of the Philadelphia Housing Authority building which houses families and older adults.

The firefighters had the blaze under control in about an hour. All residents were able to escape the building.

Firefighters said sprinklers were activated when the fire started. The cause of the blaze remains under investigation.

The footage went viral on social media and people all over the Internet can’t stop praising.

Sign this guy up for American Ninja!! https://t.co/9wsTIYP9qY

— Cyan (@cyantist) July 19, 2019

 

Wow! That’s quite impressive; especially that nonchalant walk at the end 😮 https://t.co/osnVhdJNP4

— Swetha Harini (@Swez_S) July 19, 2019