Family Grateful After Gifted Smoke Detector Saves Them During House Fire

All that's left of the Dierolf's family home is a pile of ash and ruble after it was destroyed by a fire in seconds. They told News On 6 they probably wouldn't have survived if it weren't for the smoke detector they installed just days before.

"If it wouldn't have been for that, we'd be gone," said Damon Dierolf.

Dierolf said he lived in his home with his wife for 25 years, and though it's been reduced to ashes and his six pets were killed in the flames, he's grateful he and his wife are alive.

 "Flames were crawling up the wall, the flames were everywhere. It's an emotional deal, just glad to have my wife and my life," said Dierolf. 

Damon and his wife Sandi managed to escape out of their bedroom window Thursday night -- thanks to a smoke detector waking them up. That same smoke detector was given by a friend just three days earlier.

"It’s just absolutely a miracle," Sandi told News On 6. "I wanted to live; I am not dying in here. It didn't take but thirty minutes for 25 years to go down to what you see, but smoke detectors saved our life," she said with tears in her eyes. 

Help The Family At Their GoFundMe page.

Captain Luke Baines said they respond to countless fires where homeowners have no warning. He wants people to know fire alarms save lives.

"The fact that he was able to put it in and it did its job -- I strongly believe if he didn't have this detector it would have been a fatality fire," Baines explained.

Baines said the department provides detectors for free, and many stores have them. The Dierolf family is grateful theirs worked that night, because homes can be replaced - lives cannot.

"I'm just glad my wife and myself are alive and thank you again for a smoke detector."

There are fundraisers in place for the Dierolf family. See more below if you’d like to help the family.