Sudden screams for help got neighbors to come running, but there was little they could do with the ferociousness of the fire.
Hot flames and thick smoke blocked the fourth-floor apartment's front door, so the family sought safety in a back bedroom.
But quickly the smoke and heat became too much.
The 10-year-old son was the first to jump out of the fourth-floor window as his anguished stepfather held him for a time before letting go.
Shortly after, the boy's mother also leaped for her life.
Then the man slowly climbed out of the window sitting on the ledge for a few moments as people below shouted encouragement.
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As thick choking smoke billowed out the window, he suddenly let go, falling four stories to the snow covered ground below.
Luckily for the family, there was a large pile of snow that had earlier been shoveled off a sidewalk and piled up against the apartment building.
All three family members were hospitalized and doctors said they all will make a full recovery.