'Thank God She Was There': Sister Pulls Nephew Out Of Burning Home
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- Two people were treated for respiratory problems after a fire at a Miami home.
Just before 10 a.m., Miami Fire Rescue crews battled a smoky fire in a duplex home in the 300 block of NW 64th Street.
The three adults and a five-year-old child were in one of the units. Tracey Morrison said she had no idea there was a fire until she saw flames pouring from the back of her home.
"I was just sitting in my room on my mom's bed and the next thing you know I saw flames on the wall. My stepfather tried the extinguisher but it was just out of proportion. Luckily we was able to get out in time. I had to drag my nephew out of bed. We got out just in time and called the ambulance," said Morrison.
Morrison's mother and stepfather were taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation.
She woke up her 4-year-old nephew and pulled him out of the burning building.
"If it wasn't for my sister, and actually it's her birthday today, and so she had to work today but she didn't go," said her sister Adrian Anderson. "She's the one who saw it so thank God she was there."
In the unit next door, there were four children between the ages of two and 14 sleeping. Firefighters woke them up and got them out safely.
"We could have had a catastrophe here with four young individuals, young children possibly in the hospital or possibly not here today," said Miami Fire Rescue Captain Ignatius Carroll.
Firefighters say the smoke detectors were not working and that's why something as simple as a battery check can often mean the difference between life and death.
The unit where the fire started has extensive damage and the family cannot live there right now. The Red Cross is helping the family.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.