Firefighter Joseph DiBernardo Jr., of Rescue 3, said he was thinking about his partner Jeffrey Cool's family as they made their way out of the blazing inferno on Jan. 23, now known as Black Sunday.
"I knew I had to get Jeff down," he said. "I'm a single bachelor. Jeff came first. I wanted to be the last guy out of there."
DiBernardo, 34, was released from the Burn Unit of New York Weill Cornell Medical Center after 45 days of treatment for severe smoke inhalation, multiple burns and multiple fractures.
Surrounded by family and fellow firefighters, DiBernardo said his doctors had placed 10 metal plates in his pelvis, legs and ankle.
"I think I've got about 60 screws in my body," he joked as he sat up on a stretcher with both legs in casts.
FDNY Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta said he was amazed at DiBernardo's recovery.
"Those of us who were here on Jan. 23 realize what a miracle this is," he said.
Standing in an FDNY sweatshirt next to his mother, Barbara
