COTTLEVILLE, MO (KTVI-FOX2now.com)—
An eight year old boy escapes a house fire in St. Charles County thanks to a lesson learned in school. It was a lesson well learned. It turns out Cottleville firefighters are good teachers, too."I was like call 911, my house is on fire," says Luke Shockley, recalling what he said to a neighbor Saturday night.
He tells the story calmly, and it seems he was just as calm as it was happening.
"I was watching TV, and then I saw a bunch of smoke, then the smoke alarm went off. I ran and I saw a big clump of fire fall down," he says.
What followed was a fast-spreading, intense fire that destroyed much of the Shockley home in unincorporated St. Charles County, near Mid Rivers Mall Drive and Route N. Luke was the only one inside when the fire began, but he knew what to do.
"I knew to forget about everything and just run outside," he says.
Luke's father, Frank was in the back yard mowing. Luke was smart enough not to waste time running through the house to find him; instead he ran straight out the front door and found a neighbor who could call 911.
"Then my dad came running in and tried to save me, but I was already outside," he says.
When Frank smelled and then saw the smoke, he immediately ran from the yard to the home, feeling through smoke, fighting through fire to find his son. But he heard the screams of that neighbor telling him Luke was ok. "It was sheer panic until I knew he was all right."
Luke was all right and still is, because the firefighters who came to save him and save his home, had taught him a lesson, too.
"The fire department came to my school," says Luke, explaining how he learned to run from the fire.
Firefighters from the Cottleville Fire Protection District came back to the home Sunday, loaning the Shockley's a generator, giving Luke high fives, and a tour of a ladder truck.
The fire was an accidental electrical fire. Assistant Fire Chief Scott Frietag describes it as an anomaly. "It started in an electrical outlet in a downstairs office, arced and backfed and kicked on the attic fan, so when the attic fan came on at the top of the stairs with all the windows open, it took that fire and drew it throughout the entire home," he says. "Sometimes you do all the right things, 911 is even called quickly and it just doesn't go well."
Luke lost his pet Hamster and pet fish, but some special Shockley possessions made it out. "Last night we found my mom's jewelry box, and her wedding album," he says. Firefighters also found some cash Luke's brother Zach was saving. "And we found our Avatar movie!" says Luke.
Cottleville firefighters are proud Luke knew what to do. "He listened, followed through, did what he was supposed to do so all the praise goes to Luke and his family," says Frietag.
Frank says the same thing. "He did everything perfect, I couldn't be more proud of him," he says.
Luke turns 9 years old Tuesday. His family says there's more reason to celebrate now: he's here, safe. They all are.
