Two Peekskill residents and a volunteer firefighter rescued a woman and her dog from a burning home Tuesday.

A fire broke out at 1405 Park St., leaving the 59-year-old homeowner stranded inside. That is when Pedro Aponte, Thomas White and volunteer firefighter Scott McPherson rushed into the house after seeing smoke drifting down the street.

"We went over, we kicked the door in and noticed there was a lady inside and took her out," Aponte says.

Twenty years ago, Aponte was severely injured in a fire at Hillside Elementary School, which left him with 75 percent of his body burned. However, Aponte says when he saw the smoke coming from the woman's house, he overcame his fear and sprung into action.

"You don't think at times like that to sit and hold things back," he says. "You just do what you can."

McPherson also came to the woman's aid and heard from the two men that the woman had said someone was upstairs. He reached the second floor, which was enveloped in smoke, and spotted a dog.

The homeowner was taken to an area hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation and is expected to recover, as is her pet.