Family That Lost Everything In House Fire Is Thankful For First Responders
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CENTRE TOWNSHIP (KDKA) - A family that evacuated their home following a devastating house fire is now trying to figure out what to do next.
"I didn't know yesterday when I rushed out of the house it was the last time I would have somewhere to call home," said Emmilia Zimmel, whose Beaver County home was destroyed by fire.
For Zimmel and her fiance, Anthony Taylor, they have no choice but to start over.
It was late Wednesday afternoon when their house in Centre Township was destroyed by fire. Zimmel was not home at the time, but Taylor was, along with their two-year-old son Zachary and Zimmel's 19-year-old brother.
Luckily, no one was hurt in the fire. They're now all staying with a relative in Aliquippa.
"When he called and said the house was on fire, I pictured like the stove," said Zimmel. "I didn't picture that the whole house was gone. It's not home unless you're with the people that mean most to you, and they made it out alive."
Taylor, who was home at the time, said he grabbed his son and quickly left.
"I smelled the smoke, and came out and saw the curtains in flames, and then my first thought was to grab my son," said Taylor. "My second thought was to get buckets and pour water on it, by the time I came back in, it was gone."
The fire marshall is investigating how the fire started, but the family has an idea.
"We had a candle lit and the cat has knocked it into the curtains, and that's when it was engulfed," said Zimmel.
They lost their home and all their belongings, and while Zimmel and Taylor know the future will be difficult, they had nothing by praise for first responders.
"It was frigid, it was freezing, and I thank every single person, the firefighters, the police, the ambulance that was there to risk their time to try to save our belongings and our home," said Zimmel.
A GoFundMe account has been set up to benefit the family. If you would like to contribute, click here.