STANLEY, N.C. (WBTV) – NASCAR star Denny Hamlin shared his gratitude to racing fans on Wednesday afternoon after his father was killed in a house fire earlier this week.
Hamlin, 45, posted to X on Wednesday, Dec. 31, and thanked fans for reaching out after his father Dennis Hamlin was killed in a house fire. His mother Mary Lou Hamlin was seriously injured from the fire.
“Thank you to everyone who has reached out with condolences on my father’s passing, Denny Hamlin said on X. ”My mother continues to improve, and our family truly appreciates the outpouring of support and the respect for our privacy during this time.”
On Sunday, Dec. 28, a massive fire broke out at a two-story house off of Blacksnake Road in Gaston County. Both Dennis and Mary Lou Hamlin suffered significant injuries when escaping the house fire. Dennis Hamlin would later die from his injuries at a hospital, while Mary Lou Hamlin was taken to a burn center in Winston-Salem.
The fire appeared to have happened on the Hamlin’s 52nd wedding anniversary. On a social media post from Dec. 28, 2022 Mary Lou Hamlin said that Dennis said “I do” 49 years ago.
It was not immediately clear when their wedding anniversary was.
Due to the damage that the house received from the fire investigators are still trying to figure out the cause of the fire.
Just two months before his father’s death, Denny Hamlin dedicated his milestone 60th career win in Las Vegas to his father.
“We all know you earned that one for your dad,” Hamlin’s crew chief, Chris Gayle, said over the in-car radio. “We all know.”
NASCAR released a statement this week mourning the loss of Dennis Hamlin, saying the father “instilled a love of racing in his son, and sacrificed greatly to develop Denny into a world-class talent in the sport.”
—> Read more: NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin dedicated emotional race win to dad 2 months before deadly fire
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