An act of BRAVERY....

[Mikey the Flower Guy]

just last Sunday, early morning, sometime between 3 and 4 am, our cottage caught fire somehow, and just a few hours before WE got there ,to clear out the rest of our stuff, since we had sold the place, and closing was TODAY, June 12/03.
Anyways, to make a long story short, the very first neighbour to notice, woke her husband, Jake, who, by the sounds of it, wears a SUPERMAN suit and cape, under that mild manner self of his, and HE dashed out the back door of THEIR cottage, around the BACK of our place, somehow having enough clear thinking to take a wrench with him, on the way out, ran up to the neighbours BEHIND us, up the hill, banging on the door, to wake THEM up, and ask that THEY call the fire dept., ran back DOWN to our place, and DISCONNECTED 1 of the large propane tanks, and BROKE the line to the other, AFTER shutting off the valves...AND heaved the dang things to their sides, and ROLLED them down the hill, in front of our place, to protect the neighbourhood from the possibility, of much more severe damage, due to a possible explosion!!
One of those tanks rolled part way down, and the other, RIGHT to the bottom, where, I think, the firefighters set them back upright...though STILL not sure who did THAT!!
Those tanks are darned near FULL, a couple of the neighbours, TRIED to move ONE of them, Sunday morning, after the fire dept. left, just to see how heavy they are, and they COULD NOT be budged!!
We had gotten there by that time...it COULD have been earlier...we JUST MIGHT have been inside, had we left earlier!!
I wanted to share with you a story about ONE MAN'S ability to act, AND react...I'm VERY MUCH in debt to this neighbour, and his wife Rita...for their swift actions!!
It's a weird emotional ride to be REALLY SAD, and HAPPY at the same time...not sure I've experienced that before!!
Mike

 

[Luc]

Maybe there could be a award given to him by the fire dept for his act of bravery. You should check up on this.
We never kow how people will react during something as important as a fire.
Supper is on him I am sure....
Luc

 

[Peter1]

Perhaps you should look into nominating him for a Ontario citizenship award. Glad to hear you and Sandie are ok.

 

[theRKF]

Similar story:

A few weeks back, my Father in Law and some friends were helping with reno work on a friend's cottage. While having a beer break in the PM, the new neighbours arrived at the next door cottage - a hefty, elderly couple. The neighbours soon made their way down to the beach.

After a short while, one of my FiL's friend's commented it was strange that the neighbours had started a fire when the weather was so warm. Another man checked and noticed the smoke wasn't coming from the chimney, but from the wall near the chimney!

One man ran to get the neighbours from their beach. Another looked for a hose, and not finding one, hurried to the next cottage to find one. Those cottagers weren't home, but they did have a long hose he was able to bring back to the friend's cottage they had all been working on.

Unfortunately, part of the work involved replacing the electrical panel - so the pump was DOA.

Get this - The electrician grabbed a ladder, scaled to where the live feed wires entered the cottage, and clipped wires from there down the side of the cottage and into the top of the panel. Remember, these are live wires he's connecting to. Total time for this job? Less than 2 minutes!

Next problem? No outdoor faucet at this cottage! The owner realized they could go through a window with the hose and connect to the drain on the hot water tank. They ran the hose across the lawn, through the bush to the burning cottage. The man who did the spraying wound up with hot water burns from his thumb down to his elbow.

Meanwhile, the FiL went to meet the fire dept. and guide them through a maze of dirt roads. He also warned them that the fire was dangerously close to the hydro lines on the burning cottage, and they might want to have hydro kill the power. The OPP officer made the call.

After all was settled, it appears mouse probably chewed through the wires in the ceiling, and when the cottagers arrived they turned on the power sparking the fire. The cottage was saved, but needs a new roof - and probably new furniture after all the water poured in.

Oh, and about 4 hours later, FiL and his friends hear someone whistling up the road.

The visitor greeted them:
"Hydro company! Someone call about a fire?"

 

[Mikey the Flower Guy]

You JUST DON'T KNOW....

what you're gonna do, until you GOTTA do it!!
I've heard MANY versions of what I, or, he, or she SHOULD have done, or what "they" would have done at that moment, but, this is ANOTHER story of how neighbours REALLY STILL CARE about other neighbours, and how a person can suddenly be able to clearly "reason" out a path, during a crisis!!
It's NOT until you face this yourself, that you can truly appreciate, that often, you ARE not on your own, and that help is often MUCH closer than you give credit for!!
Mike