A Michigan father suffered serious burns when he ran inside his burning home to grab his twin babies.
A Michigan father ran into his family's burning home to rescue his twin baby daughters, who were trapped in the basement, and emerged seriously burned but carrying his sobbing girls.
"I just knew I had to get my babies out," he said. "That's what went through my mind," Ray Lucas told Fox2 News in Detroit.
He and his 18-month-old children will recover, but the family lost everything in the fast-moving blaze that gutted their house. In this dire circumstance, hope and inspiration have emerged in the form of a GoFundMe account, which has already raised more than $250,000 to help the devastated family.
Lucas and the girls' mother, Shi’Ann Brown, had left the house on a quick errand, leaving their daughters with his mother and niece, who also lived at the Eastpointe home near Detroit. When they returned 15 minutes later, their house was on fire.
“The house was engulfed in smoke, I saw my mom and my niece were standing at the door and they were frantic,” Lucas said.
The 23-year-old father of Milan and Malaysia didn't stop to think. Knowing the twins had been asleep in the basement, he ran inside, where he couldn't see a thing.
"You really couldn't see your hand in front of your face," he said. "I really only found my babies due to my memory, just knowing where they were, and knowing how to get to them." He felt his way to them, scooped them up and ran back out.
Lucas suffered second- and third-degree burns to his face, neck and arms. He couldn't see for three days because of smoke damage to his eyes, he said, and he is currently unable to work because of his injuries. Malaysia spent three days in the intensive care unit of a nearby hospital, where she was treated for severe burns. She was released with bandages covering her head, and her left arm is encased in bandages and gauze that stretch to her fingertips
Milan was treated for second-degree burns and smoke inhalation.
Fire officials are investigating the cause of the inferno, which appears to have started in the basement. Lucas said he had been dealing with flooding in the home the day before the fire, and wonders if that is somehow connected to the blaze.
And while their father is infinitely grateful that everyone inside the house survived, he worries about the future because he is unable to work.
"If anybody can support, that'll be great," he said.
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