Marco Contreras extended a helping hand to his elderly neighbors. He already does their lawn, but late Monday night, he added "rescuer" to his list. He assisted them out of a burning home.
"I saw the smoke coming off the roof and I don't think it's the chimney because it's summertime," he said.
So, he went over to the elderly couple's home in the 300 block of East Rector as the rain poured down. Their front door was unlocked. He said the elderly woman was just getting off her couch to escape the burning house. He helped her outside to the sidewalk.
Contreras went back inside for the elderly man. He had made it close to the door. Neighborly Contreras helped him outside as well.
The blaze started in the couple's garage, San Antonio Assistant Fire Chief Oscar Gonzales said. Preliminarily, firefighters believe too many flammable liquids were too close to a water heater.
However, the official cause of the fire remains under investigation.
