A glimmer of hope for a family who escaped from their burning Phoenix apartment near Central Avenue and Roeser Road on Wednesday.
The 2-year-old girl, named Yuna, who was thought to have burns to 80 percent of her body now has a better prognosis.
"I was relieved — somewhat," firefighter Billy Pierce said. "To know that she was still alive and she still had a chance."
Pierce was the firefighter who burst into the apartment, grabbed the toddler and carried her to safety. Phoenix fire crews said it was the soot covering the little girl's body that made her injuries seem more severe. Now, it is roughly 30 percent.
"This is the holy grail of firefighting," Pierce said. "To be able to...for us to make a difference that huge in someone's life, especially a young child who has so much life to live."
But, it turns out her mother, 24-year-old Andrea Young, is in more serious condition. Young has 50 percent burns to her body.
After she got her 5-year-old son, James, out of the unit through the window — Young tried to go back inside to save Yuna herself before fire crews arrived.
"She thought, well, she could get out the front door and go around and break the window to get to her," her step-mother Gloria Young said. "But the couch exploded and threw her against the wall."
Her efforts have now left her with an uncertain outcome when it comes to her health.
"Mom's a little shaky right now," said Arizona Burn Center Medical Director Dr. Kevin Foster.
Dr. Foster said both Andrea and Yuna are in drug-induced comas as they prepare them for surgery on Friday.
But, Young's 5-year-old boy is also being credited for helping save his family's life.
He heard popping noises coming from the living room and got out of bed to investigate.
When he got up he saw the flames and ran to go wake up his mother.
On Thursday, James was also released from the hospital and went to talk to the firefighters and doctors who saved his family.
"Thank you for helping us to get better," James said.
The family has also started a GoFundMe page to help with the medical costs and total loss from the blaze.
