This will be rather lengthy but I want to share the details about what happened.
Yesterday Caleb and I had to run to town and drop off some papers in town. As we were driving to the bank, I passed the Animal Clinic off of Hwy 64 and saw big flames coming from the clinic. I had the strangest feeling when I passed by. I knew Daniel was on shift at Station 2 (Skyline) so that was out of his zone, but I still had an odd feeling. I immediately called Daniel's cell phone, and he did not answer. This is not unusual because sometimes when there is a fire they have to cover central station. I just assumed that he was sent to Central and he had left his cell phone at skyline. Boy was I wrong.
After I dropped off my papers, I decided to go back home on Hwy 64 to see what was going on. When we approached the animal clinic, the cops had already arrived and had the road blocked. As I drove home I received a phone call from Daniel from a different number.
At that moment; I received a phone call that no relative of a fireman wants to receive. As I answered the phone, Daniel said to me "I have been burned and they are taking me on an ambulance to the hospital". My heart sank and I began to panic. He quickly told me that he did not think his burns were very bad and there was no need for me to take Caleb out to the hospital ( at this point it was pouring down raining). I asked him if he was sure and he reassured me that he was fine. He did not go into details about the accident, which I am actually thankful for.
I had no way of reaching Daniel because the number he had called me from was one of the EMS members and they had already left him at the hospital. So I waited for what seemed like FOREVER to hear back from him. He finally called again and said that he was about to leave the hospital, they had treated his burns and he was being sent home. I asked if I could come pick him up and he said that he was fine to drive and that he would be home in a little bit, boy is he stubborn. So there I was again, waiting to find out what happened.
About an hour later, I heard Daniel's truck pull into the drive way and my heart began to race. When he walked through the doors he had a look on his face that I had not ever seen before. He gave me a huge bear hug and quickly walked into the living room and picked up Caleb. He sat us all down on the couch and began praying. In his prayer he was thanking God for giving his Captain strength to get him out of the room that he was TRAPPED in, as soon as I heard this I began to boo-hoo! It was a very emotional moment and I realized that God had watched over him so that he could return to us.
WOW! After he prayed he began to tell me his version of what happened. He said that they were actually at station 3 (16th street) when the tone for the fire went off. They were the closest to the fire so they immediately left the station and headed that way. They were the first on the scene so Daniel and his Captain were the first to enter the fire. As they crawled in, Daniel was the first one leading the way. He entered a room and a garage bay door falls directly on his legs. He described the door as 16 feet wide by 12 feet long and weighing around 500 pounds. The door landed on his ankles and his body was left in a room that quickly turned into an oven. Praise God his feet caught the door because it allowed him to still have water in his hose. Daniel was TRAPPED. His captain was on the other side and kept knocking on the door to let Daniel know that he was trying to help. Thank God Daniel had a hose of water so he was fighting off the fire and praying as he was stuck inside. He said he prayed that God would give Captain the strength to lift the door.
A few minutes later Daniel said he felt the pressure of the door lift off his legs. Captain and Greg were miraculously able to lift the 500 pound door a few feet so that Daniel could get free. He went outside to get some fresh air and everyone could see his burns on his face, ears, and neck. Of course, my courageous husband was adimant that he had to go back in. So he did. When he was inside he and another fireman decided to try to lift the door that he was trapped under and he said they could not make the door budge. As most of you know my husband is VERY STRONG, so for him to say that made me cry. God gave his fellow firemen the strength to lift that door up. PRAISE GOD!
Daniel was sent to the hospital so that they could treat his burns. He has a few 2nd degree burns on his face, neck, and ears. His ears are definitely the worst part, but wow I am just proud to say that he was able to walk away with just minor injuries. You can not even tell where the door feel on his ankles. I am sure it helped that his legs are so strong and muscular, I am pretty sure most people's ankles would have broken.
Daniel and I are just extremely thankful that God had his hand of protection over him. I cannot imagine my life without him. Days before his accident we were talking about how blessed we feel. God has really been making his presence known in our lives over the past year and this is just another one of his blessings.
We want to thank everyone for their sweet thoughts and prayers. Now... I just have to find a bubble to keep my husband in!!!
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