A stranger with bolt cutters saved a four-year-old pit bull chained to a burning van on Los Angeles’ Skid Row last week. The dog, named Rosie, was freed moments before flames engulfed the vehicle.

Surveillance video showed a person in a white hoodie tossing a flammable object into the van before fleeing. Moments later, an unidentified passerby rushed toward the fire and cut Rosie’s chain, pulling her clear.

The owner, Clara Catron, who had been living in the van with the dog, told Fox 11 that Rosie was her life. “Rosie is my baby… she’s my life,” she said. “If she would have died, I wouldn’t have wanted to make it.”

Mayor Karen Bass’ office said the fire will be investigated. “If you abuse or neglect an animal, you will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” her office said in a statement.

The incident has drawn attention to the dangers facing people and animals in Skid Row, where business owners say such violence has become routine.

Why it matters: one quick act of courage saved a life, and the arsonist remains unidentified.