Into the flames
By Melinda Harrell
Published in News on October 27, 2015 1:46 PM
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Daniel Lovelace, 19, plays with the dogs he rescued from a fire that destroyed his home. As flames engulfed his home on 303 Pleasant Pines Drive in Mar-Mac Oct. 11 he ran back to release five dachshunds, a Chihuahua-poodle mix and Chihuahua.
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Yvonne Mason finds her wedding ring in the charred remains of her home that was destroyed by an Oct. 11 fire. Mrs. Mason was married only three months before the fire.
Daniel Lovelace ran back to the fire. He had lives that depended on him.
His first instinct was not to escape and save himself. Lovelace's first thought was to save his family's eight dogs.
"I felt like it was the good thing to do," he said. "It was the only thing I could think about doing. I didn't really care about myself. I just cared about saving the animals. It would have been selfish of me to not do my best to save them."
Lovelace said he tried to put the fire out.
"(The fire began) on the front porch. I went into shock mode. I tried everything I could to put it out," he said.
But when he was unable to contain the blaze, he immediately tried to get all the dogs out of danger, even though he said the fire frightened him.
"My next thought was get all the dogs out, and the last thought was to get myself out," he said. "I felt like I was going to pass out. It was my nerves, and I was breathing in smoke."
He rescued seven of the eight dogs, eventually succumbing to the smoke and the panic that resulted in his hospitalization.
He was able to save five dachshunds, Scooby, Scrappy, Baby, Duchess and Blue, and a Chihuahua named Chico and a Chihuahua-poodle mix named Buddy.
But there was one dog that did not make it, and now, more than a week after the fire that destroyed his home on 303 Pleasant Pines Drive in Mar-Mac his greatest regret is the one he could not save, a mixed-breed by the name of Marley.
Marley was in a kennel near where the fire began inside the house.
"My only regret is that I didn't save the eighth dog," he said.
Lovelace lived at the residence with his mother, Yvonne Mason, and her husband, Joseph Mason.
Joseph Mason said Lovelace's actions were heroic.
"In my eyes, he is a hero for saving the pets," Mason said. "He couldn't get back in to save the last one, but he opened the gates so they could get out so the porch wouldn't fall down on them."
Mason said Lovelace ran back into the house rescuing one dog, and when he rushed back for Marley, the fire and smoke were too much for Lovelace to bear.
Mrs. Mason said her son has been deeply affected by the fire.
"Daniel went to the hospital with smoke inhalation," she said. "He has been praying and crying a lot. Every time he sees a fire, he panics."
Mar-Mac Volunteer Fire Department Chief Tommy Baker said when firefighters arrived on the scene the structure was already engulfed in flames around 10 p.m. on Oct. 11.
"There was heavy fire showing in the front of the mobile home," Baker said. "We did what we could to extinguish the fire, but it burned up the home. There was nothing left."
Baker said the fire appeared to have been an electrical short that started by the porch, near the dogs' living quarters.
Last week, the family returned to the site where the charred remains of their former home stood to begin the long, arduous process of cleaning.
"We didn't have homeowner's insurance so we didn't have any replacement value," Mrs. Mason said. "I couldn't afford it with my son's disability and my disability. I lost it all. There is nothing I'll get back."
Mrs. Mason is suffering from multiple health issues, and Lovelace has special needs.
The family is currently staying with relatives Raleigh with only two of the pets. The remaining are being boarded at her sister's house in Goldsboro.
Mrs. Mason said she did not know when she would be reunited with the rest of her dogs.
"She is watching them until I can get a home," Mrs. Mason said. "But I don't know. I don't have the money to get a home."
The Red Cross is helping the family, but Kathy Jones, a representative of Red Cross, says they are still in need.
"We turned it over to the nurse so that they we could get their medications," Ms. Jones said. "We did assist them with that and we provided them with $825. They are staying with relatives, and they do not have a bed, but a lot of things might not be helpful. The family does not have anywhere to put things. Money always helps."
Anyone interested in helping the family can contact the Red Cross at 252-686-1940.