New Delhi: Fifty-year-old Balraj and his wife Ganga Devi were sleeping on their second floor residence when the fire broke out in their building in central Delhi's Paharganj area on Wednesday morning.
By the time they could open the front door to escape, the blaze had already reached the main gate of the building, leaving them no choice but to run to the third floor to save themselves.
However, the couple ended up getting trapped and claimed that nearby locals, instead of coming to help, were busy filming the fiasco.
"My wife told me that one of us must survive for our children. She helped me by laying down on the floor and told me to climb to the fourth floor. I somehow reached there, but did not want to leave her. I was asking for a rope from locals, but they did not lend help," said Balraj.
He further said that repeatedly told him to leave, but his mind was telling him to save her, even though he was helpless.
Balraj said he thought it would be the end for them, as the fire kept rapidly engulfing the building. However, three brave policemen reached the spot like a godsend and rescued them.
"The staircase used for rescue suddenly got imbalanced, but we made sure that the woman gets rescued," said head constable Manoj Kumar.
The couple was rescued by making way from the adjoining building.
Balraj, meanwhile, added that a person who was trapped with them on the third floor tried to escape, and jumped to the ground. "People did not come for the help," rued the 50-year-old man.
The couple's children were not present at the time of the incident and now nothing is left of the house, which was gutted in the blaze.
"We don't know how the fire started. But the credit goes to policemen who without caring for their lives made sure we were safe," added Balraj, who sells acupressure machine for a living. His family have been living in the area for more than five years.