Family thankful for community response after fire
Fire Dept Station 6, which was on site at the 1704 Case Knife Road, May 3rd file – home of Lynn and Tony Edwards. (Contributed photo)
By DANIELLE REID
Patriot Publishing
Sunday, May 3rd began a life-changing experience for the Lynn and Tony Edwards family, who lived at 1704 Case Knife Road in Pulaski. Around 5:45 p.m., their brother Doug, was mowing the backyard lawn when he noticed smoke coming out from a window on the second floor of the house.
“Doug started hollering from outside to my Dad, who was upstairs in the house. I was downstairs, but by the time I got upstairs, it was too hot to even go into the room – the fire spread so quickly! It happened so fast,” recalled Jerry “Curtis” Edwards.
The men tried to throw buckets of water onto the fire to put it out. At first, they thought it was something small that they could easily extinguish, but it was rapidly spreading between the floor boards and they realized they couldn’t contain it. They called 911 and the Pulaski Fire Department, Station 6, responded.
Curtis and Sunni LaRue were very grateful that their four children were not at home at the time of the fire. Rose, age three; Bruce, age seven; Lucille, age ten; and Casius, age 12 were playing at a neighbor’s home. Curtis’ mother, Lynn was working at Fast Shop on S. Washington Ave. in Pulaski.
“We were blessed that everyone got out alive. Curtis got singed and so did Douglas. My husband, Tony, had second and third degree burns on his feet and Sunni suffered from smoke inhalation,” said Lynn.
Although fire safety rules caution people not to go back into a burning building, Curtis went back in to rescue “Bob,” their 3-legged Chihuahua and his son’s kitten, “Arthur.” Bob ran back into the house when he heard the sirens and Curtis ran back in to get him. “I couldn’t ignore my son’s screams for help to get his pets out of the house,” stated Curtis.
Two days after the fire, the family returned to the soot-covered shell that was their home for seven years. What they discovered compounded the grief they were already experiencing.
“People had broken into the house. They kicked in the front door and ransacked the place, taking any stuff of value that wasn’t destroyed by the fire. Air-conditioners, belt sanders, appliances among many other things. And whatever wasn’t destroyed by the fire was ruined by water damage when the ceiling fell down from the second floor,” lamented Curtis.
The family managed to retrieve a few mementos: Lynn’s mom’s jewelry box, and a box of her mom’s old coins, her grandmother’s photo album and some family pictures that were preserved in a large trunk, a treasured ceramic Christmas tree, a dart board that had been in the family for 30-years, a few art projects that the kids had made at school, and cremation boxes and ashes of a brother and an uncle.
Although nothing can replace the lost mementos, fortunately, the people in the Pulaski community are very generous.
“Almost immediately, the children’s teachers from Critzer Elementary School and the Pulaski County Middle School got together and brought things to us. The kids got books and school supplies. Community Action stepped in. The City of Refuge and Taking It To The Streets provided school clothes, backpacks and restaurant gift cards. The Red Cross put us in hotel rooms for six-weeks until we found an apartment last week. Clients of the Fast Stop in Pulaski helped a whole lot. The outpouring of help is most appreciated,” Lynn said.
“It was a little nerve-racking, not knowing what would happen next. We needed an apartment or house to move into,” explained Lynn.
A customer from the Fast Stop came to the rescue.
“A customer from Fast Stop named “Jerry” came into the store and told me about an apartment that was going to be available.
Sleep in Heavenly Peace delivered four twin beds for the Edwards children on Tuesday, June 30th. The beds are complete with mattress, pillows, linens, which brought lots of smiles from the children.
The Edwards family says they are very grateful – beyond grateful – for the outpouring of generosity from the Pulaski community.
“We want to thank everybody who has been generous and compassionate toward me and my family. Now we know we will get through this together,” Lynn said.
“We want to thank you all for the help given to our family. We wish there was something we could do for the people who helped us. God bless every one of you! I wasn’t expecting the help. Your generosity took me by surprise,” Curtis exclaimed.
Surviving a fire:
- Get out of the building immediately. Grab some belongings along the way, but don’t linger
- Shut doors to rooms to contain the fire
- Develop a Safety Plan in advance of a disaster
- Have an Escape Plan if you are caught inside the building
- Establish a Meeting Place in advance a safe distance from the building
• Make sure you have updated fire extinguishers and your smoke detectors have fresh batteries
- Keep flammable items away from heat sources
- Frequently clean your stove – the stove is a frequent source of fires
- Change the batteries when you change the clocks during Daylight Savings Times
- If caught in the fire, stay low to the ground under the smoke. Crawl if necessary to safety