St. Paul men honored for heroic rescue of man whose house exploded

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Two St. Paul men are being hailed heroes after saving a man from a burning home in April.

Thursday morning, Paul Warner and Isreal Melendez were both presented with the Civilian Letter of Commendation by the St. Paul Police Department.

When their neighbor’s home exploded last month, the two men sprang into action.

Before fire crews arrived, Paul and Isreal broke out a window and pulled a man from the burning home located near the intersection of Baker Street and Hall Avenue.

The elderly man who lived in the home was injured, but survived the blast and fire.

Fire and city officials called the two men heroes at a ceremony Thursday.

“Our emergency responders are the people who when everyone else is running away from a scary situation, a threat, they are the ones who run into it. Well, it’s very infrequently that we find civilians who are running into it. And that’s what you did. And because of that, a man’s life was saved and possibly many other lives were saved, so we are deeply grateful,” said St. Paul City Councilor Rebecca Noecker.

Speaking before the crowd, Paul Warner said Thursday that he just reacted in the moment.

The man who was rescued, Michael “Sarge” Schultz, spent time in the burn until and at last check was staying at a long-term care facility.

The cause of the explosion is unclear.