WILMINGTON, Ohio — Rosemary Russell didn't hear the explosion that could have killed her. But she'll never forget the sound of her friend's scream.
"I said, 'Are you all ri—' and that's all I got out, and the ceiling came down on top of me," Russell said.
In an instant, Russell said she found herself pinned under debris in a burning house on East Locust Street in Wilmington, flames surrounding her as gas-fueled fire consumed everything in sight.
"I just was like a deer in headlights. I could move. I couldn't think of anything. All I could see is this fire all around me, and I didn't know what was going to happen," Russell said.
What happened next would save her life and leave her forever grateful to the man who pulled her from the wreckage.
"And then all of a sudden I felt somebody pulling me and said, 'Come on,'" Russell said.
That someone was Joey Runyon, who, despite suffering severe burns in the explosion, managed to dig Russell out from under the collapsed ceiling and debris that had pinned her to the ground, along with his dog, Bella.
WATCH: Loved ones describe Joey Runyon as nothing short of a hero
The fire happened Sunday night around 8:15 p.m. while Runyon was helping Russell move out of the house she was renting. Russell said they had smelled gas earlier that day, but continued moving furniture anyway.
"There's like two hours' worth of gas floating around that house, and he must have lit a lighter, or maybe just static (from his jacket that he went to grab), but something triggered that gas, and it blew up right in his face. Oh my god," Russell said.
Russell said the blast sent Runyon crashing through the floor while she became trapped under the collapsed ceiling. Despite his injuries — burns to his face, hands and back so severe that his clothes melted to his body — Runyon managed to rescue Russell and then went back for his dog.
Russell escaped with only a minor injury to her ankle. She believes she would have died without Runyon's intervention.
"I think that I would have burned up. Because, like I said, when the ceiling fell, I got just one little spot on my ankle. I don't think I would have been able to move. I would just, I would burn up before I figured out what's going on, you know?" Russell said.
Now, Runyon lies in the ICU at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton after undergoing skin grafting surgery. His mother, Sandy Frazier, told us the past week has been one of the hardest of her life.
"When I got the call that night, I said, 'Oh, Lord. Please let him be alive,' and God blessed me with it," Frazier said.
Frazier said Runyon's girlfriend has been by his side at the hospital ever since the fire, sharing updates with the family on his recovery. When he woke up and spoke to his sister, his family knew he would pull through.
"He opened up one of his eyes, and his sister gave him a drink of what she thought was apple juice, and he said, 'Oh, that tastes like s— and we knew he was going to come back,'" Frazier said , laughing.
Russell hasn't been able to visit Runyon in the hospital yet, and the uncertainty weighs on her.
"It gives me some kind of relief knowing he's alive. But I feel like, until I can see physically that he is OK — I don't know what to think," Russell said. "Even his dog, Bella, she is having a hard time. You know, they're always together, and she's a really good, nice, lovable pit. But now, when you holler her name, or you even get close to her, she shows her teeth the whole time. She knew he was hurt, and now she's not seen him at all. So I feel like that. Even though she's a dog, she feels the same way I do, till she sees she just, she thinks he's gone."
Russell said she carries tremendous guilt about the accident, knowing Runyon was only there because she asked for help moving.
"Had I not asked him to come help me, he wouldn't have been there," she said. "Joey's a great person. He didn't deserve any of this."
But Runyon's loved ones said his actions that night were entirely in character. His mother describes him as someone who would give the shirt off his back to help others.
"Joey is one known for pulling the shoes off his feet and giving them to somebody else. He's done that," Frazier said. "There's not a person around he would not put himself in harm's way to help, and everybody knows that. He'll carry the weight of the world on his shoulders for somebody if he has to."
Brian Oberschlake, who has been friends with Runyon for 20 years, agrees.
"He always helped others. No matter what," Oberschlake said. "I'm proud of my little brother. Ain't nobody else had balls to do what he done. And he deserves the prayers. He deserves everything that he can get right now, and know that we all love him, we support him, and we're here for him."
Oberchlake took out his fabric markers Friday and wrote a message of support on a white T-shirt for Runyon. He wore it when he spoke with us. He said he'll give it to Runyon when he visits him at the hospital.
"Joey doesn't want to be called a hero for doing what's right. He said anybody would do that. But that's not the case. People don't do things like that for people anymore. People don't care about people. Joey does. He cares about everybody," Russell said. "I will forever be grateful. Forever, I will. Anything he ever needs. If I can do it, he's got it. He gave me a second chance," she said.
Runyon's brother, Chris Godlove, said the family is staying strong during this difficult time.
"It's hard. Joey, we do love you, dude. Everybody's praying for you," Godlove said.
Frazier said doctors hope to release Runyon from the hospital next week, but she believes he would make the same choice again, even knowing the consequences.
"Thank God that he left him here for us," Frazier said. "Because we need more Joey."
