Page 9 - Patrick Barr News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

Holding on to me too tight. so i grabbed him with my arms and legs. i didn't want to lose him. >> with barr holding tight to giagos, the pair is lowered to the floor below. where they spin and wait. >> there was so much going on in the building that no one realized i was out there. so that's when i hit the windows to alert them i was outside. and finally somebody noticed i was out there and that's when everybody came together and pulled me in. >> with giagos safely inside the building, barr turns to acknowledge the cheering crowds below. >> they didn't know who the victim was. they didn't know...

>> while other firefighters hold him down, shay lets out rope and begins slowly lowering barr. within seconds, barr is face to face with the trapped man. >> he was very exhausted and he was surprised to see me. >> standing in the smoke-filled window with the fire closing in, music producer jose giagos had been close to giving up in the seconds before barr appeared. >> i thought i was going to die. suddenly i hear a very loud voice. don't jump. don't jump. i'm here. and kind of caught my attention. and then, again, look up, look up. i open my eyes and i look up and i saw the boots and somebody ...

Window ledge of the 12th floor, looking like he's ready to jump to escape the growing heat and smoke. >> people will not burn to death. if they can jump, they'll jump. it's that painful and it's like you're drowning in smoke. >> barr is not yet anchored to anyone or anything. but he kicks his legs over the edge almost 200 feet above the ground to reassure the man in the window. >> barr is already hanging over the roof without having a rope attached to anything, letting him know not to jump, we were on our way. >> quickly shay attaches the other end of barr's rope to his own harness. >> i would...

The billowing smoke is caught on camera by news crews at street level and by ron pearlstein from his video production office directly across the street. >> i was sitting at my desk and i saw smoke. just a little smoke coming out of the window. then i saw more. i grabbed my camera, i started shooting. >> as pearlstein zooms in on the building, he sees a man perched on a window ledge trying to escape the thick smoke. >> i'm like, oh, my god, now this is a life or death situation. >> firefighters from the fdny rescue one unit arrive at the building joining other crews already on scene. patrick ba...

Further out on the ledge. >> i could hear the firemen saying stay calm, we're on our way up. >> we're on our way up. just stay there. >> by the time we got to the roof, i realized no one could get through the interior because there was such a large amount of fire. so they knew the only recourse was to get this guy from the roof. >> the firefighters from rescue one begin to prepare to lower barr by rope to grab the man. >> part of my equipment was the roof rope. so i brought it up, i would use it. it had to be by rope because the ladders wouldn't reach him. >> lieutenant patrick patty brown is ...