It’s a rough start to the new year for two South Lyon, Michigan, families after their duplex caught fire on Wednesday night.<\/p>\n
The community is rallying behind the families, and you can too.<\/p>\n
Brian Nado on Sunday searched the area around what remains of his home on North Lafayette Street in South Lyon for his daughter’s cat, Pico.<\/p>\n
“All of the stuff that’s in the house, I don’t, I could care less. It can all be bought, but that bond our relationship with Pico, it can never be replaced,” Nado said.<\/p>\n
He said the fire started around 11 p.m.<\/p>\n
“I’m just thankful with how late it was that, miraculously, none of us were sleeping at the time,” Nado said.<\/p>\n
That’s when he noticed smoke infiltrating his downstairs apartment, so he grabbed his dog Kolohe and ran outside.<\/p>\n
“It looked like a flamethrower. I mean, I couldn’t believe it. It happened so quickly and I heard screaming,” Nado said.<\/p>\n
The screaming was coming from upstairs, where Deanna Vaughn lived with her father, Richard.<\/p>\n
“She stayed behind to try to get the animals, but the animals just panicked and jumped out of her arms. And that’s when my dad had to pull her out at that point,” Hali Vaughn, sister of Deanna Vaughn, said.<\/p>\n
Hali Vaughn says her father escaped with no injuries.<\/p>\n
“He was completely fine, which was amazing considering he has a hard time getting around,” Hali Vaughn said.<\/p>\n
Her sister, however, suffered third-degree burns and needed skin graft surgery.<\/p>\n
When Hali Vaughn saw her sister in the hospital, Deanna Vaughn’s only thought was for her cat, Binx, and chihuahua, Pippa. The pets never made it out alive.<\/p>\n
“She was shaking, she was crying and I don’t even think she was crying about, like, the pain. She was crying because of the animals,” Hali Vaughn said. “She said that she felt like she failed saving the animals.”<\/p>\n
A GoFundMe has been started for both families.<\/p>\n
“It’s really amazing to see, like, how people came together for my family, and it’s nice to know that, like, not all hope is lost,” Hali Vaughn said.<\/p>\n
As of Sunday, Nado continues his search for Pico, posting flyers with pictures and contact information.<\/p>\n
“The firefighters did say they did not find a cat inside the downstairs,” Hali Vaughn said.<\/p>\n
The exact cause of the fire is still under investigation.<\/p>\n
Nado is holding on to hope that Pico is out there waiting for his family.<\/p>\n
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