A 7-year-old boy is rightly being hailed as a hero after saving his little sister’s life during a house fire in New Tazewell, Tennessee.
Chris and Nicole Davidson reportedly put their three children to bed on December 8 and fell asleep at 8:30 p.m.
But a few hours later, Nicole woke up to the smell of smoke, and within minutes her family’s house was on fire. Worse, 22-month-old Erin Davidson was trapped in her room.
"I thought I couldn't do it, but then I said, 'I got her, dad,'" the boy says. "I was scared, but I didn't want my sister to die." https://t.co/4MCXvCHqDR
— CNN (@CNN) December 27, 2020
“The smoke and fire were so thick there was no way I could get to her,” Chris Davidson said, according to CNN.
The situation desperately called for a hero, and that hero stepped forward in the unlikely form of Eli, Chris, and Nicole’s seven-year-old son.
“We went outside to get to her from the window, but there was nothing for me to stand on to reach up there,” Chris explained.
“So I picked up Eli, who went through the window and was able to grab her from her crib.”
Eli was then able to escape the burning house with little Erin in his arms, undoubtedly saving her life. When firefighters arrived on the scene, the house had become an inferno.
“We couldn’t be more proud of Eli,” Chris said. “He did something a grown man wouldn’t do.”
Speaking to CNN about his heroic efforts, Eli explained: “I thought I couldn’t do it, but then I said, ‘I got her, Dad.’ I was scared, but I didn’t want my sister to die.”
Chris and Nicole, both former firefighters, have reportedly fostered 34 children over the years, including Eli, and adopted two others, Erin and Elijah.
“We lost everything that we have ever had,” Chris said.
“We have spent our whole lives in that house. Our three cars were also damaged by the fire. It’s devastating. We have nothing.”
“You have never been as humble as you are when you don’t even have your own underwear to wear.”
Indeed, thanks to Eli, a far worse tragedy was averted. I don’t know about you, but I think this 7-year-old boy deserves all the praise in the world.
Losing a home to fire is an unimaginable tragedy, but we can’t even imagine what could have happened if Eli hadn’t been there.
