A Detroit man saved his two infant, twin daughters from a house fire while they were asleep in the basement, according to local reports.
Ray Lucas, who said he and his girlfriend went for a quick gas station run, came back to see his home completely engulfed in flames on Saturday morning. They were only gone for 15 minutes.
Lucas reportedly saw his mother and niece standing in front of the burning home appearing frantic, but did not see his daughters.
“I just knew I had to get my babies out,” said Lucas about his twin 18-month-old girls Milan and Malaysia, who were still inside. “That’s what went through my mind.”
He then dashed back into the burning building to save the girls.
The brave dad said he used his memory to navigate through the Eastpointe home.
“You really couldn’t see your hands in front of your face,” he recalled about going into the smoking interior. “I really only found my babies due to my memory, just knowing where they were and knowing how to get them — just from having that same route.”
His memory served him well, as Lucas was able to recover both children. Malaysia was left with severe burns and had to spend some time in the ICU before being released back to her family shortly after. Milan was also in the ICU suffering from some smoke inhalation — both girls have since left the hospital and are recovering, according to a Facebook post by their mom ShiAnn Brown.
Lucas himself suffered several injuries as well, including second and third-degree burns on his body, smoke inhalation and eyesight loss.
“I was temporarily blind for three days and they said it was a miracle I could see,” he told reporters. “I’ve got burns on my arms, but for the most part, everyone is still here.”
While the cause of the fire is still unknown, Lucas said the family had been dealing with flooding the day before the fire and that could be a potential cause for it.
Lucas has been unable to work due to his injuries, and the family has lost their home.
“These last couple days have been crazy but I just wanted to thank everybody for their support, whether it was prayers, money, clothes, anything, I’m truly grateful,” said Brown on Wednesday via Facebook. “My babies were discharged from the hospital yesterday & their Dad was also discharged. We are now at a hotel & we’re all just working on recovering.”
She added that the family is in need of financial assistance and resources to help them find a new home.
In a GoFundme set up for the family on Wednesday, they say they need additional support for medical expenses, for furniture for the home and to mitigate income loss now that Lucas is out of a job.
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