Jan. 07--A man who described himself as a retired firefighter but did not share his name warned a Franklin County family early Sunday that the rental home they occupied on Crafty Fox Drive was about to catch fire and then donated more than $100 to help them cope with the blaze's aftermath.
"He very possibly may have saved five lives," Franklin County Fire Marshal Bennie Russell said today.
Russell said the man was traveling south on U.S. 220 and noticed shortly before 5 a.m. that there was a glow from the house. He turned around and drove to the home, a two-story, wood-frame farmhouse visible from U.S. 220, and banged on the door to wake the occupants.
James and Melissa Perdue and three of their four children were home at the time. A fourth child was spending the night with an uncle. The man who stopped stayed with James Perdue and, then, at some point after firefighters arrived, left the scene.
A tearful Melissa Perdue said today that she, her husband and the children in the house could have died without the passing motorist's decision to turn around and alert them.
"We are very, very thankful," she said. "Without that man, I might not be here. My husband and kids might not be here."
Russell said the first emergency responders arrived at 5:18 a.m.
He said the fire apparently started in one of two outbuildings, burned both those structures and spread to the house. He said the fire was in the back part of the house, burning in a kitchen, a bedroom above and the attic when firefighters arrived.
Although the home was equipped with smoke detectors, they did not sound until after the family escaped the blaze. Melissa Perdue said the fire spread to the house from the outbuildings shortly after the man told them to leave the home.
The house is "going to be a total loss," Russell said.
He said volunteer fire departments from Boones Mill, Rocky Mount, Burnt Chimney and Callaway responded, along with rescue squads from Boones Mill and Franklin County and county public safety officials.
The fire's origin appeared to be electrical and possibly related to an extension cord that served an outbuilding, Russell said.
The family did not have renters insurance but is being helped by the Red Cross and others.
Melissa Perdue said the response has been remarkable. The family's landlords, Patsy and Thomas Hubbard of Franklin County, have another house they can rent and have paid for the family to stay temporarily at the Comfort Inn in Rocky Mount, she said.
Copyright 2013 - The Roanoke Times, Va.
