Four men commended for life-saving heroism during deadly Hanoi fire

Pham Quoc Luat, Nguyen Kim Long, Dong Van Tuan and Hoang Van Tuan were commended for their heroic acts by the Cau Giay People's Committee on Saturday.

Tran Anh Duong, secretary of the Trung Hoa Ward's Party Committee, said they have displayed bravery and ingenuity while saving people.

At around 12:30 a.m. on Friday, a fire began at a house on Trung Kinh Street. Upon seeing the flames and people screaming for help on the second floor, Luat went and got a ladder and hammer to attempt a rescue. Long retrieved the items and supported Luat. Hoang Van Tuan stabilized the ladder, and Dong Van Tuan climbed up and used the hammer to smash down the walls on the second floor.

The people took turns to smash into the wall until a hole appeared, enough for four people of a family to escape.

The fire was put out after an hour. Fourteen people, including two family members of the landlord and 12 tenants died in the fire. Six others were injured.

An investigation is ongoing to figure out the cause of the fire.