The family and Branson firefighters hope showing the damage done can help other families stay safe. “The ceiling fan is gone, everything is gone,” Connor Geatches said. He gave KSPR News a tour of his family's burned condo through the eyes of a seven-year-old. “It was scary when the fire started,” Connor Geatches said. “It smelled nasty.” He says his first thought was to go outside with his mother and four-year-old sister Grace. “I started crying,” Geatches said.
Branson Fire and Rescue Division Chief Randy Fogle gave a tour through the eyes of a firefighter. “The smoke line on the wall down at the very bottom you'll see there is less coloring on the drywall,” Fogle said. “That is where the good air is. This shows why we teach the kids in schools to get low, crawl like a baby, get out and stay out.”
Fogle says the black soot that lines the condo just a few feet off the ground shows dangerous and deadly gas rises. He says everyone should crawl rather than try to walk out of a home that is on fire. “It would be devastating. It would kill you almost instantly,” Fogle said. “Most people die from the smoke and gases rather than the actual flames.”
“We lost everything down to the pots and pans,” Michael Geatches said. “Families out there need to know how serious it can get and how quickly it can get that serious. They need to know what to do to minimize them potentially getting hurt.” He recommends renter's insurance and fire extinguishers.
The fire started in the master bedroom. The family tried to put it out but it quickly spread. “Just be prepared. I never thought this would ever happen to my family and it did,” Amy Geatches said. “Make sure your kids know the dangers of fires and what to do in case of a fire.”
The kid's room suffered the least damage because the bedroom door was closed. “Be sure to close the doors on the way out because it controls the fire and limits damage,” Fogle said.
A working smoke detector helped the family escape safely. Firefighters say the detectors in your house should be tested once a month. The batteries should be changed twice a year. The three most common causes of fires are electrical, heating and cooking.
