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Sunday Fire Totals Auburn Home

By Justin Surrency
WIBW – September 3, 2013

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A family in Auburn spent the day sorting through what’s left of their home.

They say lightning sparked a fire early Sunday morning. Patrick lawless says his family was in the home around 7 a.m. when they heard a loud bang.

He went outside to see if maybe a nearby transformer had blown. Everything looked fine, but about ten minutes later, his wife came out and said flames had erupted inside.

An American flag, one of the few items still in tact, waves in the wind outside a home left gutted by a fire sparked by a lightning strike early sunday at their Auburn home.

Patrick said, ” It’s a hollow feeling to see everything you have go up in smoke. Everything you worked for and worked to build and all you have is the clothes on your back. Literally that is all you have.

After calling 911, friends and family members immediately tried hosing down the flames until emergency responders arrived.

Patrick said, “There were a number of fire crews and volunteers that came and they did all they could.”

Fire crews fought the flames for nearly five hours. The house is now a total loss and the family will have to rebuild, but Patrick says he has so much more he can still hold on too. “It started out a bad day but it ended up pretty good because you realize the good things the lord has blessed you with. Friends and family and volunteer fire fighters, all that is more important than this dwelling.”

Shawnee County’s website values the home around $238,000. Despite the massive fire, no one was injured.

www.ksffa.com

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