After seven years of driving an Uber, I thought Id seen a lot, but this was new.
She was heading to LaGuardia Airport.
I turned to Jemimah and asked, Can we stop and help?
She said, Absolutely.
When I pulled over, I was telling myself,You are not running in there.
Youre a father of two wonderful girls.
They need their dad around.
Then I heard someone say, Theres still someone inside, and instinct took over.
I sprinted right in.
I knew that even a small fire can quickly grow out of control.
I had a quick conversation with God.
I was, like,Lord, you know why Im in here.
Im only trying to help.
As I was running up the staircase, I ran into a gentleman, maybe mid-30s.
I kind of grabbed him and said, We got to go.
But he said, No.
So I let him go and continued up the staircase.
She told me that her air conditioner had caught on fire.
But this woman, she was not going to budge.
You see that smoke?
That smokell take you out.
She just stood there.
I had to let her know that the fire wasnt her fault.
Things happen, I said.
Dont worry about the AC.
And then I said the thing that finally made her move.
I told her, If youre not leaving, Im not leaving.
I put my hands out, and she grabbed them.
Slowly, we started down the stairs.
I was walking backward and talking to her the whole time.
Her face never changed.
We finally got to the bottom of the staircase, and I led her to the door.
Then I had to go back for the gentleman.
I ran to the staircase and called out for him.
When I heard him, kind of stumbling, I said, Come on.
We got to go.
I was trying to be pleasant but at the same time stern.
Finally he agreed to leave the building.
I grabbed his arm, and we headed out the exit.
Jemimah and I got back into the car and headed toward the airport.
And, thankfully, she made her flight.
In all, we were only delayed by about 10 minutes.
For this to have worked out the way it did, Jemimah had to be the passenger.
If she had said, No, dont stop.
Im catching a flight.
Can we just call 911?
I wouldnt have felt bad or guilty about doing that.
But she was, like, No, lets go.
So it had to be her.
I believe we are all spirit.
If were all spirit, then were all family.
So I was in there helping family.
Driver Fritz Sam, 55, lives in New York City with his wife and two daughters.
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