LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Just after the holidays a mother of seven experienced one of the hardest times in her life due to a house fire where she lost everything that was inside.
"It was very scary because the fire took over in a matter of minutes," Keiara Thomas said.
Thomas and her family have been seeking shelter elsewhere after they were forced out of their home on Rice Street last Thursday after it was engulfed in flames.
"They said it started from the dryer room and that was the main part of the house they had to put out more than anything," Thomas described.
She said the fire happened around 9:00 p.m. when she was at home lying in bed with her seven children. Suddenly two of them started to smell smoke, once she got up and took a look around she knew it was time to evacuate.
"I have a 16-year-old, I have a 14-year-old, a 13-year-old, two eight-year-olds, a nine-year-old, and a two-year-old, so I'm very thankful. It could have happened any other way. Could have been somebody sleeping, me having to try to get them up and I'm just thankful," Thomas added.
Now, a week later there is not much left of Thomas' home but despite the damage, she said that her greatest gift is just being alive.
"I feel like the only reason why we didn't lose our life is because the wind was blowing to the right side, which actually got the other house caught on fire. So that held the fire for a little while we were trying to get out of the house and everything," Thomas said.
Kadrianne Roberts, the Community Outreach Specialist at the Little Rock Fire Department explained how there is an uptick in house fires around this time of year. They're typically caused by things like not cleaning out the dryer lint, keeping portable heaters on, fireplaces, and more.
"As far as dryers, you should check those fairly regularly. The lint in there ignites fairly quickly once it is ignited. So to keep those clean will be the best bet to preventing a house fire in the event that your dryer catches on fire," Roberts said. So for the fireplace, and the portable heater, it's good to keep the three-foot barrier around so anything that can catch on fire should not be within three feet of those things because they're more likely to catch fire and cause a house fire."
Roberts said if you've found yourself in an emergency there are some tips on what you should do to protect yourselves or your family.
"Firstly, get out and call 911 even if sometimes you don't think it's a big deal. Some things may be going on behind the scenes that you don't know so it's best to call the fire department immediately," she explained.