Gilmer County lieutenant loses home in fire
GILMER COUNTY, Ga. - A lieutenant with the Gilmer County Sheriff's Office jumped to safety after his home went up in flames. The house fire happened on March 20.
“I was asleep mid-afternoon ahead of my overnight shift when I hear a loud noise,” McClure said. “I opened my bedroom door, but fire and smoke came in.”
McClure rushed to the bathroom, but could not get out there, so he ran to the second floor in hopes of jumping out a window.
“I kicked the screen in and luckily neighbors caught me bracing my fall,” McClure said.
McClure’s wife was at work at the time, his youngest son coming back from school, but his oldest was inside the home when the blaze started.
"The first thing I asked was ‘Where are my kids?’” McClure said. “Neighbors told me everyone was safe.”
The home the McClure family had spent 30 years in, was gone in a flash.
“It’s all we’ve ever known,” McClure said. “We raised my kids here, spent holidays here... the hardest part if letting that go.”
McClure has spent the past nine years on the force helping others, but now he is the one in need.
“It’s not my house anymore, it’s gone,” McClure said.
The cause and origin of the fire is still under investigation.
The Gilmer County Sheriff's Office is raising money for the McClure family: https://www.gofundme.com/mcclures-house-fire