Luggage Handler Emerges As Early Hero In Brussels Airport Attack

In the immediate, chaotic aftermath of the Brussels airport bombing on Tuesday, panicked passengers fled the scene, following their instincts to escape danger.

Not Alphonse Lyoura.

Lyoura, an airport baggage security officer, stayed put and began assisting those injured in the blasts, helping -- and in some cases, pulling -- them to safety.

In photos taken of Lyoura by the BBC, smears of blood stain his fluorescent green work pants. 

"I saw people lying on the ground covered in blood who were not moving," Lyoura recalled to Agence France-Presse  in an interview. "A lot of people lost limbs."

"I helped at least six or seven wounded people," the 40-year-old said. "We took out some bodies that were not moving. It was total panic everywhere."

Lyoura told Reuters another five people he carried out seemed dead.

His bravery didn't go unnoticed on the Internet. One woman  highlighted Lyoura's actions as those befitting a "helper" as described by Mr. Rodgers :

When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping." To this day, especially in times of "disaster," I remember my mother's words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers – so many caring people in this world.

Plenty applauded his bravery on Twitter: