Denver Catholic

6 MARCH 24-APRIL 13, 2018 | DENVER CATHOLIC Around the Archdiocese E lías Venegas, 53, the man who was witnessed hanging from the third fl oor trying to escape the raging fi re that rapidly consumed the construc- tion site at 18th and Emerson on Wed., March 7, says he was not alone. He has no broken bones and suŠ ered no organ damage or concussion. He's simply sore. "I felt that God was there and that he acted. He was protecting me," Venegas told the Denver Catholic. "That's how he manifests himself in our lives." Venegas was the person farthest away from the exit, as he was on the roof of the fi ve-story building when the fi re broke out. "I fi nished eating [on the roof ] and told one of my co-workers I had to call my wife," he said. "So, I walked away from them, who were next to the ladder, to the opposite side of the roof. And as I was walking back, I saw smoke coming up one side of the building, and yelled to warn them. If I hadn't walked that way to call my wife, I don't know what would have happened." Venegas remembers the next few sec- onds confusedly, but he recalls running behind his colleagues down to the third fl oor, where authorities believe the fi re originated. There, he encountered a thick cloud of black smoke, so much that he lost sight of his co-workers and could barely see the ladder leading to the second fl oor. It was almost completely dark. "I decided not to go down. Some- thing was telling me not to go through there," Venegas said. Instead, he ran to the fi rst opening he saw, a balcony door that had wood studs running across it for safety. He got to the outside of the building and tried to swing himself to the second fl oor, but as he was hanging, he realized it was impossible. There he was photographed by a wit- ness, just as he was getting ready let go. "My arms got tired and my hands started burning. It was too hot," Ven- egas recalled. "I looked down and thought, 'I can't jump, it's too high!' "I then remember letting go, and as Man witnessed jumping from Denver blaze says God was present BY VLADIMIR MAURICIO-PEREZ vladimir.mauricio-perez@archden.org I then remem- ber let- ting go, and as I was letting go, I felt a cool breeze, as if some- one had blown at my face." ELÍAS VENEGAS Elías Venegas was on the roof of the fi ve-story building when the fi re broke out and only had a few seconds to escape. PHOTO PROVIDED " I was letting go, I felt a cool breeze, as if someone had blown at my face. And I didn't feel anything else. I don't remem- ber falling or landing. The next thing I remember is people around me asking me if I was OK. I got up confused and dizzy, but my only clear thought was that I had to call my wife." His co-workers, who had barely made it out safely, didn't see him come out of the building and thought he hadn't made it, so when they saw him on the street, they received him with much joy. Venegas was taken to the hospital that afternoon and the following day for a general check-up, x-rays and other tests, but there was nothing wrong with him. "I'm just a bit sore," Venegas said with a smile on his face. "Everyone was amazed, even the doctors, that I had no broken bones or other serious injuries. The nurse, the security o´ cer and my supervisor said it was a miracle that nothing happened to me jumping from that height." Venegas, who is a catechist at St. Pius X Parish in Aurora and a volunteer in other archdiocesan organizations such as the San Pablo School of Evangeliza- tion for the Hispanic community with his wife, Raquel, is mostly grateful for being alive. "God didn't want me there [in Heaven] because I have yet to fi nish my mission here on earth," Venegas said. "It saddens me to think that two other workers couldn't escape. I will be praying for them and their families." "I feel very grateful for this new opportunity that God has given me," he said. "We proclaim a living God and I was able to experience that. He's not just something that happened 2,000 years ago. He still acts in our present world. I've seen it and so have many other people." PHOTO FROM THE DENVER FIRE DEPARTMENT FACEBOOK

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