An ex-marine and wide receiver in college football saved a three-year-old boy who was thrown from a balcony by his mother by catching his fall.
28-year-old Phillip Blanks was recorded catching Jameson Long last week in Phoenix, Arizona after he heard the child’s mother, Rachel, plead for help from the inside of a building.
At first, Phillip was unsure what all the noise was about and went out of his home to check on what he believed could have been a fight.
And as he was exiting the building he heard the word “fire,” being shouted so he quickly went underneath the mother’s balcony.
The ex-marine was able to catch the toddler right before he hit the ground and brought him to safety.
“He was twirling in the air like a propeller,” he told ABC7. “I just did my best. His head landed perfectly on my elbow.”
"I saw another guy was standing there ready to catch the boy, but he didn't look like he was going to do it, so I stepped in front of him"–Phillip Blanks former Kalamazoo Central Wide Receiver https://t.co/Da269ITmms
In an ABC7 interview, Phillip, who works as a security man, recalled:
“There wasn’t much thinking. I just reacted. I just did it.
“The guy who was there with me — it looked like he wasn’t going to catch him. So that’s why I stepped in. I just wanted to make a better catch.”
The former California Saddleback College wide receiver said his training helped him save the baby.
“I know how to catch,” he said. “I’ve learned how to catch a football. So I’ll give some credit to football.”
In addition, he has credited the US Marines for the skills he was taught:
“I can definitely credit to the Marine Corps for instilling this good training in me to save a life. I don’t see myself as a hero. A person trained to do my job is trained to protect people.”
Even though Phillip managed to save the child, his mother died in the fire as she was unable to exit the building safely.
“She’s the real hero of the story,” Phillip said. “Because she made the ultimate sacrifice to save her children.”
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the Long Family. Click HERE if you wish to contribute.
See Phillip’s catch as it happened in ABC7’s report below.
