This day will forever be etched in my mind. It is the day that changed my life forever. Below is a recap of the first few hours.
Approx. 5:40am – Awoken from a sound sleep by the
noise of shattered glass. Thinking it was one of the glass lamps I just bought
for the guest bedroom, I took a peek. The last thing I expected to see were
flames bursting through the windows. I screamed “FIRE!” before the smoke alarms
even went off. While my husband jumped out of bed, I saw the silhouette of my
2.5 year old and scooped him up rushing downstairs and out the front door to my
neighbor across the street.
Approx. 5:50am – Several 911 calls were made, a
call was made to my mother. I watched as flames engulfed the side of my house,
thinking we’d need to redo the entire kitchen. I watched as my husband wearing
only shorts, in subfreezing temps, tried to battle the flames with a small fire
extinguisher and bring over a hose, from the neighbors, which proved to be too
short. Mason kept telling me “it will be ok Mama”. L
Approx. 5:57am – Finally the ladder truck arrived.
When Dave asked where the hose was, the fireman responded, “Talk to the Mayor”.
By this time I could see the flames inside of my house, and almost halfway
across the first floor. My neighbor said to me “It’s gone”; although I couldn’t
comprehend what that truly meant; I responded, “I know”. My car had started to
singe and slowly became engulfed in flames as well.
Approx. 6:10am – We were evacuated from our
neighbor’s house for fear of it catching on fire, despite being across the
street. They had to leave their animals at the house, I felt so very guilty. I
would learn later that the closest hydrant did not work. Braintree and Quincy
fire departments were called in to assist. Hoses had to be attached to hydrants
almost a quarter of a mile away to get proper pressure. We would learn later
that the fire was so massive, it melted the side of the house next door to us,
the side of the ladder truck, and the front of the house across the street.
Approx. 6:20am – I witnessed my entire 2,000+
square foot home collapse. I watched this on the local news from the view of
one of several helicopters above. It was horrific. Regardless of how hard the
firemen worked, our house was not going to be saved. I learned later that fire
doubles every 60 seconds. The firemen worked to ensure that our neighbors’
houses weren’t victims of the fire, as well as the surrounding woods.
Approx. 7:00am – We met with the fire chief to
share what we knew of how the fire might have started. And learn what our next
steps were, as we had nothing and didn’t know yet that absolutely nothing would
be salvaged from the fire. We had no clothes, no identification, Dave could
hardly see without his contacts; we had no method of transportation. But we did
have our family who rushed to our sides, and our neighbors.
Approx. 8:00am – We were given socks, coats that
were too big, shoes that were too small. But it didn’t matter, it was more than
we had and just so very grateful for generosity. Discomfort was not one of the
feelings we could even comprehend.
Approx. 9:00am – I left to take Mason to daycare;
I wanted him to have some normalcy so that Dave and I could try to figure out
what was next. As I walked to a family member’s car, a woman rushed out of her
house with a coat, scarf and mittens to cover my pajamas up. I tried to
decline, as I’ve never had to be on the receiving end of donations, but she
insisted saying that I needed it more than she did. Thankfully Mason goes to a
wonderful daycare, and they embrace him like family. I knew it was good for
him.
Approx. 9:30am – My uncle came by with his truck
for us to borrow and a hotel room booked for us to sleep for a couple of days.
Thank goodness, because where we were going to lay our heads that night was not
a thought that had yet crossed my mind. I went with my sister to Target. I
needed to feel somewhat useful and take a step forward. We stopped in to my
favorite breakfast place to get coffee and something to eat (which never left
the bag). Although I now was telling the events of the morning for only the
second time, it didn’t feel like my story. It was someone else’s. Other people
lose their houses to fire, not me.
Approx. 10:30am – Shopping at Target was a
complete out of body experience. Christmas had been just 12 days before. I’d
spent time in there before and after buying things for our first Christmas in
the house, and for the seasons ahead. It was a totally different and cloudy
experience this time. Needing someone buy my son underwear, toothbrushes,
socks, and just basic items would have been humiliating had it been anyone
other than my sister.
Approx. 12:00pm – Dave, my father and I met with a
major/total loss representative from our insurance company. He made us feel
good about the process, gave us an advance. Although we felt comfort with our
rep, little did we know what an uphill battle we would have with them over the
next 9 months.
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| House listing photo ~ August or September 2009 |
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| Photo courtesy of The Patriot Ledger |
What happened from that day forward is what this blog is about...
Survival, Rebuilding, Designing, Decorating, Organizing, Living
xoxox
~Melanie
