Man Rescues Neighbor From Burning Home 20 Years After His Family Perished In A House Fire

Sep 10, 2021 by apost team

A man is being hailed as a hero after rescuing his neighbor from a house fire. Mark Collum, a commercial fisherman, has humbly taken on the new title of hero after he was quick to act upon hearing his neighbor screaming about a fire in the early hours of the morning in her home in Rowley, Massachusetts. Unfortunately, this was not Collum’s first experience with a house fire; he had lost his wife and two young children in one just over 20 years ago. The fisherman had not been home at the time of his family’s house fire in 2001.

Working through his grief and struggling to overcome such a difficult loss, Collum is now being praised as a hero for his bravery. It was close to 5 a.m. in the morning of Sept. 5, 2021, when Collum heard a woman screaming for help and shouting, “Fire! Fire!” He knew he needed to do something to help her, and he knew that he needed to act fast. After calling 911, his instincts seemed to completely take over, and Collum hurriedly ran outside and into the home of Deb Shanahan, his neighbor.

Without hesitation, Collum grabbed his neighbor and rushed her out of the house, hoping to keep everyone safe. First responders were quick to arrive at the scene shortly after. Although he was not home during the tragic house fire his family faced two decades ago, Collum knew exactly what to do when he discovered that his current neighbor’s home was filled with flames. Read on to find out more about his heroic actions.

WCVB reported that when Collum went outside early in the morning of Sept. 5, 2021, he noticed his neighbor’s house on Wethersfield Street in Rowley, Massachusetts, was on fire. He had woken up to the sound of his neighbor screaming, asking for help, and immediately called 911 upon seeing the flames. “I heard, ‘Fire! Fire!’ I just threw my clothes on and just, out of reaction, saw her in the kitchen milling around,” Collum said. “There were flames billowing out the back, smoke filling up the kitchen.”

Once he got inside, he found Shanahan and worked fast at helping her escape the dangerous situation. “I just grabbed her and just took her out,” Collum explained. “I had a little smoke in my lungs, same with her, so we just kind of took her outside and things worked out well.” WCVB reported that Shanahan was hurt in the fire, but her injuries are not believed to be serious. Rowley Fire Department officials are continuing to investigate the cause of the fire.

In January 2001, Collum sadly lost his wife and two young daughters in a house fire that tore through their home in Ipswich, Massachusetts. Lisa, his wife, and Lindsay, his 4-year-old daughter, were trapped on the third floor of their home. Lisa had dropped 5-month-old Carly out of the window, but she passed away. Collum had not been home at the time of the fire.

“It still resonates in me,” he said. “But I’m glad things worked out today. I’m just glad I was here and did the right thing.”

apost.com

What did you think about this inspiring story? How do you think you would have handled the situation? Let us know, and be sure to pass this along to your family members and friends, too.