you ought to get yourself safe first before saving others.
some situations of not being selfish but was looked upon as being selfish
1) burglary: when all of a sudden, unknown male/female(s) got into the house out of no where. could be from the ceiling or the back door. there are 2 people in the house, you and your sister. you have the brightest opportunity of getting out of the house because you are just about to throw the rubbish outside and your sister is happily singing in her room. So you heard and saw the burglar running up stairs without realizing you are just about to get out of the house. you have two choice:
a) chase the burglar and try to save your sister or,
b) run outside, leave your sister inside, seek for help.
a very emotional and heroistic being will go to the kitchen, grab a big butcher knife and chase the burglar upstairs hoping to save his/her sister.
a very rational person, will continue throwing out the rubbish, run to the nearby available help e.g. the neighbours or anyone who seem able to help and ask someone or you yourself dial for help i.e. 999.
if you have to ask, i will choose the second option, as advised by any police.
the second choice although may seem selfish at first but have the higher chance of survivality not to seem like a more logical thing to do.
2) H1N1 : don't socialize, be selfish, but be safe