When Gorgui Lamine Sow heard shouts for help and saw the fire at a residence in eastern Spain last week, he didn’t think twice. Scaling a wall and climbing onto a balcony, he entered the burning second-floor apartment, hoisted the occupant onto his shoulder and carried him to safety.

But Mr. Sow, an undocumented street vendor from Senegal, did not stick around for thanks and congratulations. Instead, without identifying himself, he disappeared as soon as the emergency services reached the scene, in Dénia, about 60 miles south of Valencia.

A few days later, a local newspaper tracked down Mr. Sow, and moves are now afoot to reward him with residency. The proposal has been backed by an online petition that has gained more than 40,000 signatures in the week since the rescue. The authorities in Dénia have also said that the town plans to honor Mr. Sow with a special award.

Image “I don’t like to see people suffer,” Gorgui Lamine Sow said of the rescue. Credit... Roberta Etter, via Reuters

“I did what my heart told me to do,” Mr. Sow told the newspaper, Levante-EMV, about the rescue. “I have nothing, but I am strong and I can help,” he said. “I don’t like to see people suffer.”