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A Georgia mother dropped her children from an apartment building balcony to waiting police officers in order to save them from a major fire, police say.

The Chatham County Police Department said Sunday that officers Thomas Velte and Brandon Lowe had performed the dramatic rescue after being first to the blaze at the Georgetown Oaks complex in Savannah at around 4 a.m.

"Officer B. Lowe and Officer T. Velte ran towards a building where the upper floors were engulfed in flames," the department said in a Facebook post.

"They spotted a mother with her two children on an upper floor balcony. The mother signaled for the officers to catch her children, and dropped them down to the officers who caught them safely."

A total of five people were rescued from building, police said, with the two children taken to hospital for smoke inhalation treatment.

Thomas Velte and Brendan Lowe were first on the scene while firefighters were still arriving, according to officials (Chatham County Police Department via Facebook)

While fire officials investigate the cause, they are also trying to identify a heroic resident who knocked on every door and yelled at everyone to get out, according to local broadcaster WJCL 22.

The mother herself has not been named.

Fire crews were dispatched at 3:55 a.m., and arrived to find a fierce blaze. Footage from the scene showed flames reaching high into the night, encompassing the entire building and sending a thick plume of smoke into the sky.

After the children had escaped, two firefighters, John-William Farrell and Christopher Carter, placed a ladder against the building and rescued the remaining three people under "extreme" conditions.

By 5:44 a.m. the blaze was under control, with the building partially collapsed. Officials said 22 of the 24 units in the building had been destroyed.

Thirteen hours after the fire, Velte and Lowe were back on duty.

"This is the part of police work that is often forgotten — the quick turnaround and return to duty even after the most difficult of nights and heroic of moments," the police department said.

"But, it is the reality of first responders in all fields. B Watch gets their well-deserved 'weekend' when their shift wraps up just before dawn tomorrow. As always, we are proud to serve."