In the early morning of 30 March 1985, Stéphane Renaud was awakened by a violent explosion that demolished a neighbour's house. Without hesitating, Mr. Renaud ran to the scene. Alerted that an elderly woman was trapped in the flaming ruins, he forced open the door of the apartment and cleared a path through the smouldering debris and live electric wires. He found the victim crouching at the rear of a long corridor but, paralysed with fear, she refused to follow him. Mr. Renaud lifted her over his shoulder and, braving smoke and the threat of another explosion, carried her outside.