A South Korean firefighter who’s only been on the job for about two months saved the lives of five people in Seoul over the weekend by blocking flames with his back so they could jump out of a window, according to CNN affiliate KBS.
Firefighter Choi Kil-soo waited until everyone was out of the third-floor apartment before jumping out of the burning building himself.
But he broke his hip in the fall — meaning he won’t be able to walk down the aisle for his wedding, which was scheduled to take place in three weeks.
Video from the scene shows Choi Kil-soo shielding the residents from the flames as they climbed out the window.
“All I could think of was rescuing the residents. I was holding onto a handrail, but my gloves were already on fire,” he told KBS.
With all the residents out of harm’s way, the brave firefighter crashed to the ground, fracturing a hipbone.
The firefighter had to postpone his wedding, but speaking to KBS from his hospital bed, he says he did what he had to do.
“My mission is to save people. I acted out of instinct rather than out of knowledge, because I had to carry out my mission,” Choi Kil-soo said.