Abraham Bonilla, Massachusetts 17-Year-Old, Saves Family From Burning Apartment (VIDEO)

The lives of nearly a dozen apartment residents were saved early Monday morning in part due to the courage and instincts of a quick-witted teenager from Mattapan, Massachusetts, the Boston Herald reports.

Seventeen-year-old Abraham Bonilla woke up his family and neighbors to save them from a fire in their three-story apartment building. According to the Boston Herald, Bonilla came home from a party around 2 a.m. and felt compelled to act when he smelled something burning in the hallway.

The fire was initially on the second floor and eventually burned through the third floor and into the roof, Fox News reports.

After kicking down the door to the second floor and rushing nearly a dozen people outside, the teen risked his life and went back inside to save his mother who was recovering from surgery the week before.

“I had to get my Mom out. I had to. That’s the first thing that came to my mind,” Bonilla told CBS Boston Local.

If it weren't for Bonilla's bravery, the outcome could've been fatal. He told CBS News that "adrenaline took over" as he saved the lives of family and friends. "I had to make sure that everybody was okay."

Bonilla's story reminds us of another courageous teen who made headlines earlier this month. A 19-year-old volunteer firefighter, Adam Hebert, saved a woman from a home fire on his first emergency call in Acushnet, Massachusetts.