A couple in their 60s lived in a home on McCrary Court, off Turniptown Road, for more than a decade, until a week and a half ago, when it burned to the ground.
The Stewarts weren’t hurt in the fire, but Jan said her beloved cat didn’t make it out, neither did her son’s ashes, and irreplaceable heirlooms were destroyed.
While sadness and grief prevails, frustration and anger is apparent, as she points to how crews could’ve done more to save her home.
On Saturday, March 8, Jan was awakened around 8 a.m. by what she said was the worst noise she’s ever heard, of glass breaking and objects crashing down.
At first, she thought it was their cat causing a ruckus, but then Jan recalled, “I went to leave my bedroom, I got to the door and couldn’t see anything. I was like, “Am I asleep? What is this?’ It was all gray, and all of a sudden, I was hit in the face with black smoke.”
She grabbed her phone and ran out through their screened-in porch. Before calling 911, she alerted her husband, John, who was in their basement, to get out of their burning home. When they escaped, and looked toward the front of their house, she said the roof was already engulfed in flames.
Their son, Alex, passed away a year and a half ago. Unfortunately, Jan and John no longer have the chance to bury his ashes, because they were lost in the flames.
Parker, her rag doll cat, was stuck in the basement, and unable to make it out in time, passing from smoke inhalation.
“He could’ve made it out, he was not burnt at all,” she said, her voice shaking. “He could’ve made it out of that house.”
Her mother’s artwork, an extensive ornament collection, grandparent’s antique clock and one of Turniptown Church’s first pianos are some of the irreplaceable objects that they will never see again.
“Every time I turn around, I think of something else that can never be replaced,” she stated mournfully. “They say ‘Oh, you’re lucky you got out alive.’ I’m alive, but my things were who I was, so a part of me is gone.”
The Stewarts are currently staying in a hotel, as they collect their thoughts on what to do next. Jan expressed her gratitude for help they received from the Red Cross, and donated clothing from members of their community.
“I didn’t want to use the Red Cross,” she said. “So many others are much worse off than we are from all the flooding and stuff, but they gave us $640 to use as we needed, and we got a place to live for a week.”
Since the fire, Jan has worked to regain the necessary items used every day that were lost. She’s been able to get her car keys replaced, one of her bank cards, prescribed medications and finally has been able to get her dentures replaced.
“I always had a ‘to go bag’ ready with medication, wallet and cash,” she mentioned. “I was ready, but when that black smoke hits, there is no getting ready, it’s getting out.”
On the tragic day, multiple firefighters were sitting in front of her porch watching the smoke and flames, according to Jan. When she asked why they weren’t doing more to save the things she holds dear, they said they were waiting on more water.
“I just walked away in total shock, and that happened two or three times where they had not a drop of water going on my house,” she added in frustration. “It was upsetting for me to watch a dozen firemen not doing anything, and three or four, if not more, out by the road just laughing and joking around.”
She noted that a Gilmer fire inspector, who wasn’t able to be named, told her the county isn’t equipped to handle fires like the one that took her home.
She said that they told her, “We are not equipped to fight fires like this. We don’t have the equipment needed, we don’t have the manpower. He said, ‘We couldn’t even enter the home to knock down the fire from inside, we didn’t have the gear.’”
The closest fire hydrant was six-tenths of a mile away, but she said crews had to wait on a tanker to arrive to access water. She believes that if crews had proper access to water, they could have saved the basement before the top floor collapsed.
Deputy Fire Chief Jason Bryant explained that Gilmer County Fire and Rescue crews were on the scene within three-and-a-half minutes of being dispatched. They initially brought 12,000 gallons of water, six trucks and dump tanks, due to limited access to fire hydrants in the area.
“We never lost water a single time, the entire time we were there,” Bryant said. “We put almost 95,000 gallons of water on that house, and never lost water. The crews did an amazing job shuttling it.”
He expressed that the Gilmer Board of Commissioners supports the fire department adequately, with 17 firefighters on duty daily and proper trucks that can carry more water in rural areas where access to hydrants is limited.
“We’re very sorry anytime someone loses their valuables in a house fire, but we did the best we could with limited resources to be honest with you,” Bryant noted. “In this county, the biggest problem that we run across is a lack of water sources … and the water authority is a private entity, so we have no control over that as well.”
From March of 2024 to now, Bryant reported that there have been 26 commercial and residential fires in the county. Six of those fires resulted in a total loss, including the Stewart’s home.
“I don’t want this to be about our personal loss,” Jan voiced. “I don’t want someone to die, or someone to lose another pet. I want people to know that they could very easily be in our shoes.”