A rookie firefighter battling his first blaze helped save the lives of four children — including a 5-month-old — when a Brooklyn apartment erupted in flames early Sunday.
Probationary firefighter Jordan Sullivan, 36, pulled up with his fellow Bravest to the Wyckoff Gardens city housing complex in Boerum Hill at around 1:30 a.m.
“On the way in, my heart was racing. I was thinking my first fire, I was excited,’’ said Sullivan, of Ladder Co. 105.
“But once I got to the fire floor, it was automatic.”
He fought his way through fire and thick black smoke to make his way into the apartment.
He soon found the youngest victim.
“The baby was not conscious. I just knew I had to get the baby out.”
He grabbed the child and ran into the hallway.
He handed off the baby to another firefighter and went right back inside the apartment to help with the search.
“Visibility was very poor,” Sullivan said. “It was very hard to see. There were flames.
“I checked behind the door for victims,’’ he said.
Since they could hardly see ahead of them, Sullivan and his colleagues used their hands to feel for other victims.
They found an 8-year-old girl who was badly burned, as well as a 14-year-old boy and a 14-month-old girl who suffered smoke inhalation.
The rescuers placed oxygen masks on the children and carried them out of the building.
As soon as they arrived, the firefighters were warned by neighbors that youngsters were trapped inside.
“A woman in the hallway was very upset that kids were in there,” said Lt. John LaBarbera.
“We knew we had a job to do.”
And they did it.
LaBarbera had nothing but praise for his rookie colleague.
“He did a great job,” LaBarbera said. “I think it’s extraordinary, coupled with the fact that it’s his first fire.”
The 8-year-old girl was listed in critical condition at New York Hospital’s burn center. The 5-month-old was in stable condition there.
The 14-month-old and 14-year-old were both stable at New York Methodist Hospital, officials said.
“We heard that the baby was alive. Great news,” LaBarbera said.
“You’re very happy that you were able to make that positive impact.
A 65-year-old woman was also injured and taken to Methodist Hospital.
The cause of the blaze in the high-rise was not immediately known.