Neighbor Saves Child From House Fire Over Thanksgiving

By Robert Alexander

Senior Crime & Court Reporter

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A Thanksgiving night fire in Larchmont, Los Angeles, led to a dramatic rescue after an off-duty paramedic, Richard Recinos, pulled 7-year-old Savannah Vasquez, from a burning duplex as embers literally fell all around them.

The blaze, which began just before midnight, ignited trees beside a two-story residence on West Oakwood Avenue and quickly threatened multiple families living nearby.

Newsweek contacted the LAFD for comment via email outside of normal office hours on Monday.

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What To Know

An off-duty paramedic, Richard Recinos was driving home from his family’s Thanksgiving dinner at around 11:30 p.m. And he saw a glow. “We watched it grow from a few blocks down,” he told KTLA.

He got to the fast-spreading blaze on West Oakwood Avenue ahead of the fire department and first assumed that the home was empty, only then to notice a young girl step onto the porch.

That child was Savannah Vasquez, age 7, who was awake waiting for her mother to come home.

She explained the moment she realized the danger. “At first I thought it was just my imagination, but then it got warm, too. I just standed there for like 10 seconds. I didn't know what to do,” she said.

Savannah then remembered her school’s fire-safety lessons: “Don’t grab anything, leave the house, leave wherever you are.”

After alerting her grandmother, she headed toward the exit as the fire intensified.

According to eyewitness accounts provided to KABC, residents first noticed the fire on West Oakwood Avenue when ash began striking their windows.

Neighbor Ari Vokydis heard what sounded “like a snowstorm, like snow hitting the window.” He added: “I looked up, and it was ash. It was all sort of bright red outside.”

Vokydis immediately alerted his family, told his wife to call 911, woke his children, and began knocking on doors to warn others in the duplex.

“I came down here and banged on the door to wake my neighbors up. Their kid was the first one to wake up,” he said.

“I believe she was somewhere right here,” Richard Recinos said, pointing to a spot near the trees where the flames were well alight.

Savannah described his sudden appearance: “That guy just came out of nowhere, and then I was there, and then he helped me get out of the fire.”

Recinos says he simply saw the flames and responded: “Thank God I had a leather jacket. I zipped it all the way up and it did its job. I ran in there… and I picked her up and I kind of just ran out. I dropped her off right over there,” he added “There was another guy who kind of helped out.”

Video captured by a Citizen App user shows Richard carrying Savannah away from the duplex as ash and burning embers fell all around them.

Once firefighters had arrived, they ensured everyone else was brought to safety.

In daylight, video showed damage to the property was significant and the family’s vehicle burned beyond repair.

According to Savannah, “Grandma’s car is now like a marshmallow.”

Firefighters said the residence, though damaged, was not condemned, allowing the family to remain in their home. Savannah sustained minor burns and blisters on her feet from hot debris but was otherwise unharmed.

What People Are Saying

Savannah Vasquez when asked how thankful she was that her family survived, said: “A million bajillion to a trillion percent… because I love my family.”

Richard Recinos, the off-duty paramedic who saved Savannah, said: “This was a quick moment and a quick getaway.”