There was a house fire in our neighborhood the other day. We were acquainted with the owners, having attended a Halloween party there once, but weren’t close. We didn’t know that the wife had passed away a short while ago nor that the husband was suffering from dementia. Their son was living with him. Eyewitnesses said that they both got out, this was confirmed in the newspaper reporting them as displaced. Eyewitnesses on the day told us that no one was hurt in the fire. They did lose their pets.

It was terrifying for me because it all happened as I was returning from my volunteer job at the museum. I was a mile away when I first saw the smoke, big black plumes roiling up. I couldn’t really tell where it was coming from, but knew it was close to our house. I tried to call my husband and he didn’t answer. Panic set in. I dialed again but before I could finish, my phone rang and it was him. He was okay and our house was not in danger.

The fire was big but the fire department was able to contain it to just one home. It gave me a chance to reconnect with our neighbors which gives me a thought. I really need to ask them for their phone numbers. If I hadn’t been able to get through to my husband, it would have been nice to be able to call one of them to find out what was happening. This doesn’t just apply to a fire situation, I need a back-up plan for connecting whenever he is home alone. I will be talking with several of our neighbors today to set up that emergency call line, and let them know that I am here for them too. I don’t want to wait for the next crisis, I prefer to be prepared.