A five-year-old boy is being hailed as a hero for saving his sleeping grandmother from a house fire using lessons he learned at school.
Nathaniel Stocks
Inside Edition reports that a 5-year-old Californian boy, Nathaniel Stocks, toured a San Bernardino Fire Department fire house with his elementary school last Thursday - and just two days later, he put his new knowledge into action.
When the youngster awoke early on Saturday he found smoke filling his room and immediately knew what to do. He dropped to the ground and crawled beneath the smoke to his grandmother's room and woke her up.
"I think he saved our lives for sure," his grandma, Kimberly Ratliff, told newsmen. "I have no doubt I was sound asleep."
Ratliff said she got up to find huge flames inside the home. The two were able to flee the home before it was destroyed.
When fire crews reached the home, they were able to retrieve Ratliff's Chihuahua and bring the fire under control within 15minutes. No one was injured.
Little Nathaniel knew what to do after the trip to the firehouse last week, his family said.
"Nice thing about Nathaniel he remembers everything," Ratliff added. “He’s a really smart kid and pays attention.”
When asked by CBSLA how his grandmother reacted to the fire, Nathaniel responded: "She said a bad word."
On Monday, he was honoured by the fire department, which posted a photograph to Twitter:
A preliminary investigation found the fire was likely sparked by a space heater, officials said.