Baltimore's Jeff Novack meets accused arsonist & woman he rescued. Watch the story.

Previous coverage of this story here, here and here

WJZ-TV article by Andrea Fujii:

It was an emotional reunion Thursday between an injured firefighter and a woman whose life he saved.

Andrea Fujii explains they met in a courtroom as they both faced the person accused of setting the fire that nearly killed them both.

Lucille Ziglier, 85, finally got to say “thank you” to the firefighter who saved her life.

“If it wasn’t for him, I would not be here today,” said Ziglier.

On April 7, police say Brittany Garcia, 19, started the fire at a Northwest Baltimore apartment building.

According to charging documents, she was upset after seeing the father of her child with another woman.

In court she pleaded not guilty to first-degree arson charges.

Firefighter Jeffrey Novack suffered a fractured hip and burns in the fire. He was in court Thursday to see Garcia for the first time.

“I wouldn’t say I’m mad. I’d just like to see that justice is served,” said Novack.

He ran back into the burning building twice to save two unconscious residents, including Ziglier.

“I don’t think you can match the feeling of what it’s like to save someone’s life,” said Novack.

The union claims rotating fire station closures forced backup to take longer to respond that night.

Within the next couple of weeks the city must find a way to raise tens of millions of dollars to prevent any cuts to public safety. If they don’t, firefighters say it will put their lives and the public’s lives at risk.

Novack says neither injuries nor budget concerns could have interrupted this reunion.

“Just being here and meeting this young lady puts all that out the window and I don’t think about that now. I’m just happy I have her standing next to me,” said Novack.

“And I’m happy to be standing next to him,” said Ziglier.

Novak is expected to make a full recovery.

Garcia’s defense attorney declined to comment on the case. The trial will start in September.