METHUEN, Mass. --
A Methuen woman said she owes her life and that of her baby's to firefighters who rescued them early Sunday morning. They were among four people rescued after a two-alarm fire swept through their apartment building.
Maribel Mendez and her 2-month-old son were trapped by thick black smoke on the third floor of their apartment building at 80 Lowell St. when the fire broke out about 4 a.m.
Methuen firefighter Juan Posada pulled Mendez and her child from the apartment. "We saw the people at the window. We raised the ladder, and I went up there. They passed me the key, and when I went back there were two more people that were trapped, and I helped them down," Posada said.
"I threw my baby in first, threw my other kid in, then I went out the window and my husband went out the window," said Mendez.
A teen and another adult were also rescued by firefighters who put a 35-foot ladder up against the building.
"We were fortunate to get everyone out," said firefighter Brian Fortune.
One person was taken to the hospital for treatment of minor injuries. Others were treated at the fire scene.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
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