After an Albany family lost everything in a December 9 fire, the community has come together to raise thousands of dollars through a GoFundMe page, and now the city is recognizing one family member for rescuing his 8-year-old sister.

Dijour Carter, 19, ran back inside his burning apartment building on Western Avenue after realizing his sister was still inside. Carter had to fight through thick smoke, but says he found his crying sister on a bed. Carter was treated for smoke inhalation, but they both made it out safely.

Monday night, the Albany Common Council honored the heroic act with a resolution, recogzining what Carter that morning.

“I always say I’m speechless, because at first I don’t know what to say," Carter said. "The experience of everyone coming to me and commemorating me for what I did ... at the time of the incident, I was just trying to do my thing, be a responsible man, as the head of the household."