“We’ve had two tragic events in our parish,” said Atley Walker Jr., a West Baton Rouge council member representing the Brusly area. “It’s a blessing to see the amount of support we’ve had. I can’t really put it all into words.”
The fire started in one unit of a duplex on Rev. Manuel Street around 5 p.m. on Jan. 7.
“We came out with only the clothes on our back,” said Mae Helen Young, a 65-year-old woman whose home was destroyed in the fire. She, her daughter and two grandsons are now living in a hotel while they search for a new apartment.
“This was a very serious fire,” said West Baton Rouge Fire Superintendent Butch Browning. "It spread quickly, and there was little time to even call the fire department."
Firefighters on the scene struggled to control the blaze because the duplex was attached to another building and access was difficult. The homes were severely damaged and most belongings of all four families were destroyed. The cause of the fire is undetermined and the fire marshal is evaluating electrical and other issues, but Browning said it was not suspicious.
Young said she was sitting outside in front of the house with her 6-year-old and 2-year-old grandsons when the fire started. Her wheelchair was inside, but she was able to pull the boys to safety.
“That was nobody but God,” she said. “I can hardly walk, but I grabbed my little grandbaby and we walked (away).”
A church organization donated a wheelchair and Brusly Elementary has rerouted the school bus to the hotel where the kids are staying. Young said she’s grateful for the way the community has stepped up to help her family, and to be alive.
“You can always get material things back, but you can’t get your life back,” she said.
Dr. Erica Joseph, Delta Sigma Theta’s LA-Tri Parish alumnae president, said the organization mobilized as quickly as it could.
“When we heard that they’d lost everything; we just rallied our members together,” she said.
The West Baton Rouge Fire Department cooked 300 jambalaya dinners to raise funds for the seven adults and three children displaced in the fire (suggested donation: $10 or more); Bergeron’s Meats and Smokehouse donated food; Delta Sigma Theta helped organize and package meals.
The Red Cross helped with medical care and other immediate needs; St. Vincent de Paul in Baton Rouge assisted with housing and free meals; and local businesses and houses of worship, residents and elected officials stepped in to help. Donations will be distributed evenly among the four families on Jan. 24.
Residents in line on Saturday smiled, hugged, shared condolences, offered help, and handed over donations. This, they said, is what a community does.
“This is the best parish when it comes to taking care of their own,” said Browning. “I’m just very honored and humbled to live here and be part of this care for your neighbor mentality.”
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