While most people would have run out of this now-charred apartment building at the Southwood complex in Lansing, Dequan Townsend stayed in.

"I was knocking on everyone's door," he tells News10.

Banged on everyone's door, swallowing smoke while he was at it, until all 38 tenants escaped.

Townsend says it was a no-brainer.

"I was just thinking about my kids. I was scared. I know a lot of people have kids, I'm just glad I woke a lot of people up," Townsend says.

Tenant Jason Griffin is thankful for Townsend's bravery. Townsend called the fire department quickly, and because they arrived so fast, Griffin somehow managed to save his wife's new wedding dress-- and his two cats, now each down one of their nine lives.

"I woke up because there was someone frantically banging on my door," Griffin says.

"It's amazing," says Lt. Maggie Murphy of the Lansing Fire Department. "A couple residents saw the fire and ran away, that's perfectly understandable. But he had the wherewithall and strength to go door-to-door, knock on doors."

"They lost their homes but at least they've got their lives to start over," Townsend says.

Thursday afternoon a few of the more fortunate tenants gathered their water-soaked belongings. Thirty-eight people displaced: many hopeless, none thankless.

"Someone just drove by and called you a hero, how does that make you feel?" we asked Townsend.

"Makes me feel good, that I did a good deed," he says bashfully.

"I'm surprised I even made it out, to be honest, it's because that one man woke me up," Griffin says.

And on september 11th, another disaster with heroes emerging.

"9/11, I'm always gonna remember this day," Townsend says.