Sedro-Woolley, WA family loses home, pets in fire, community steps in to help
Sedro-Woolley family loses home, pets in devastating fire
A Sedro-Woolley home was destroyed in a fast-moving fire while the owners were on vacation, killing their two dogs.
SEDRO-WOOLLEY, Wash. - A Sedro-Woolley family lost almost everything in a devastating fire on Friday, including their beloved pets.
The family says the fire started near the kitchen stove or stove hood, and burned so hot, it melted items in nearly every part of the home.
"This was our kitchen area and the dining room," said Jerry Middleton, the homeowner.
What they're saying:
Jerry and his wife Chandra came home to sheer devastation after getting the call while on vacation that their home had burned.
"Nobody was home at the time except our two Labradors," said Jerry.
Chandra and Jerry say Hunter and Ginger were Chesapeake Lab mixes, and they considered them their "fur kids".
"They were kind of naughty. They liked to get on the counter and get the chicken eggs and get snacks," said Chandra.
"Very loving dogs," said Jerry.
The couple says to lose them was devastating.
"It's very, very upsetting. You can replace your house, but you can’t replace your pets," said Jerry.
"The biggest tragedy is losing our dogs. That’s really hard," said Chandra.
The backstory:
Chandra says a person driving by noticed the house was on fire and called 911 while trying to help put out the flames with an outdoor garden hose until firefighters arrived.
The family says the fire burned so hot, items melted in every room of the home, whether flames reached those locations or not.
"The heat was just amazing, bubbled paint and everything," said Jerry.
Jerry also recently injured his back and had been passing the time with a new hobby.
"Because I broke my back, I’ve been doing Legos," he said.
He said his prized Lego collection also melted in the fire.
"This is my collection of Legos, and you can tell how hot the paint got," said Jerry, pointing to a series of melted, plastic lumps on a shelf.
What you can do:
The couple's son started an online fundraiser to help.
"The outreach has been amazing," said Jerry.
"I felt really proud our son did that for us, not so much about the money, but the words that he said. It has touched my heart," said Chandra.
Dig deeper:
Also, the couple says Ginger, their dog, had puppies of her own long ago, pictured below. One of those descendants now lives with their son.
On Monday, that descendant gave birth to puppies of her own.
"It would be nice to have somebody in the family, probably from Ginger," said Jerry.
The Middleton's are now considering adopting one of Ginger's grand-pups to ease the heartache.
"It’s just stuff. The puppies are different though. They will be very missed," said Chandra.
We reached out to the Skagit County Fire Marshal's office on Monday night to see if we could get more information on a potential cause of the fire, and we are waiting to hear back.
MORE NEWS FROM FOX 13 SEATTLE
Fircrest veteran says he was scammed of $28K from 'veteran-owned' business
WA man's loved ones battle misinformation, honor legacy after killing
Lime 'devastated' by Seattle crash critically injuring 2 riders
Seattle mayor responds to growing concerns surrounding data center proposals
Those cute sea lions at Seattle's Golden Gardens Park can still be dangerous
To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter.
Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national news.
The Source: Information in this story came from original FOX 13 Seattle reporting and interviews.