Haitian hero saves ‘suicidal’ woman in Chile

SANTIAGO – A Haitian immigrant has been hailed a hero after risking his own life by trying to catch this woman as she plunged from a ninth-floor flat in Chile.

Video footage taken by neighbors living opposite showed the women holding on to a balcony edge before falling to what should have been a certain death.

But Richard Joseph, a Haitian immigrant living in the South American country for last three years, was below her – and cushioned her fall with his own body as she hurtled towards the ground and witnesses could be heard screaming on homemade videos of the dramatic moment.

Both were rushed to hospital alive – with the unnamed woman’s savior suffering a knee, foot and arm injuries.

It remains unclear whether it was a suicide attempt or not.

President Michelle Bachelet thanked the Haitian in a meeting with him at La Moneda.

Millionaire Chilean businessman and philantrophist Leonardo Farkas has already promised to donate nearly £2,500 towards Joseph’s medical costs after the incident in Independencia, a commune to the north of the capital Santiago.

“I did not think it was dangerous for me, I had in my mind to receive her,” Joseph told La Tercera.

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While Joseph’s heroic action has earned him huge respect, the Haitian is also receiving job offers on social media.