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Man Catches Woman Who Jumped From Burning Homewood House

HOMEWOOD (KDKA) -- Screams for help, followed by a split-second decision as a house on Idlewild Street in Pittsburgh's Homewood neighborhood goes up in flames.

Jeremy Whittington, who lives across the street, was taking out the trash when he spotted the smoke and heard screams for help coming from a second story window.

"There were flames everywhere," Whittington told KDKA's Kym Gable.

Whittington stood in a narrow gap between two houses and encouraged the woman to jump into his arms, which she did.

"It's crazy. I'm still a little [shaken] up myself. Glass was breaking. Smoke was in my face," he said. "I got to the side of the house and told her to jump."

The house is vacant, so investigators believe the woman was homeless and may have been staying in the structure. When Pittsburgh firefighters arrived on scene, there was fire on all three floors.

"She was brave enough to jump," Jeremy said of the woman.

Gable: "Do you consider yourself a hero?"
Whittington: "No. No. Just somebody here at the right time, right moment."

Fire officials say the woman was taken to the hospital, but appeared in stable condition with no serious injuries.

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