'Can I give you a hug?': Detroit Firefighters, EMS honored for rescue efforts in apartment explosion

DETROIT (FOX 2) - Three months after a gas leak blew apart a Detroit apartment, the firefighters and EMS personnel who rushed into the shaky building have been honored for their bravery. 

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, Councilmember Fred Durhal, III, and the Detroit Fire Department – among others – hosted a ceremony to recognize the firefighters who saved the lives of 12 men, women, and children inside the apartment on Littlefield near Schoolcraft and Schaefer.

What they're saying:

Detroit Fire Commissioner Chuck Simms said the firefighters, who arrived and ran fearless into the building, exemplifies the heart and courage expected in the department.

"We train for incidents like this, but you can't teach heart and you can't teach determination," Simms said.

The initial came in as a car into building – but firefighters found a much different decene as the two-story apartment building had been rocked by an explosion caused by a gas leak.

Simms said in late March that people were jumping out of the building as they were pulling up.

All told, 13 people had to be pulled from the home with severe injuries and burns. One person, identified on Monday as Brandon Bradwell, died from his injuries.

"The responders that day saved 12 lives, including the lives of six children. Passed children out the windows, created makeshift ladders to help people, down. And we tragically, lost one member, Brandon Bradwell. Who suffered from burns. Despite the efforts at receiving hospital. And he's somebody that that we remember today," Duggan said. on Monday.

'It sounded like a bomb': Detroit explosion rocks apartment building

Bradwell passed away from his injuries on April 26, almost one month after the explosion.

His fiancé, Jamila Hines, was in attendance and spoke for just a few moments on Monday before she broke down.

"That night,, I just got home from work. I work at a bar as a waitress. And normally when I come home, I'm either woken by this little one or my fiancee, which was Brandon Bradwell, their dad. I can't do this," Hines said.

She then turned to an EMS worker.

"I remember your face. Can I give you a hug?" 

After the two embraced, Hines' daughter spoke and thanked those who rushed in.

"On behalf of family, I just like to say thank you. Thank you. Because without you guys, I hate to think about it, but thank you," she said.

In the days after the explosion, the building was demolished. Councilman Fred Durham said it was razed to keep people safe.

"And we tore that building down, immediately, because we did not want anyone else to be harmed in that incident," Durham said. "But what you saw was what you see – and you have seen – the past few years here in the city. When all our departments come together, when our first responders, who have not only this courage and bravery, that heart for the public, put their lives on the line. Many folks run away from danger. And these are folks who run towards it. to ensure that everybody remains safe."

The fire was deemed to have been caused by a gas leak on the first floor of the building. What caused the gas leak is still under investigation.