WATSON — A fire that ripped through a mobile home in Watson earlier this month has left a father and his adult son without any place to call home.
On Sunday Nov. 3, Kevin Forrest said he had been sleeping in the recliner when he woke up around midnight to smoke in his dad’s trailer, where he was also staying. He immediately went to help his dad, Johnny, who is in his 70s and needs a wheelchair to get around.
“I just happened to wake up. In another minute, it could have all went bad,” Kevin recalled.
After Kevin got his dad out of the house, a neighbor, Joshua Lewis, helped Kevin drag his dad further into the yard and away from the fire.
Lewis said he’d first heard multiple dogs barking before he heard what he thought was yelling. When he looked out his window, he saw the flames at Johnny Forrest’s trailer and could more clearly hear someone yelling for help.
After rushing on foot to get to his neighbors, Lewis said he saw Kevin and Forrest laying on the ground a few feet away from the porch. Lewis was able to pull Forrest further away, but then they realized they needed to get even further away from the burning home.
A police officer, who arrived at the scene, also helped get Forrest a longer distance away from the trailer, Lewis said. After they were far enough away, Lewis sat with his neighbors for about 20 minutes while the fire department worked on controlling the blaze.
“It went all the way through one side of the trailer to the other side, from the back room to my dad’s bedroom,” Kevin said.
The trailer is considered a total loss. Kevin said that the fire department’s report listed the fire’s cause as undetermined. Fortunately, neither of the men were injured in the fire, but they got out of the home with only their clothes; Kevin’s wallet and phone were left behind.
“I had to borrow some money to get me shoes because I had no shoes when we got out,” Kevin told UWK while in tears.
Johnny’s insurance has paid for temporary lodging, but in about two weeks, the men will need to find a new place to stay.
While they’re both grateful to be alive, the experience was terrifying.
“I’m 49 years old, and this is something I don’t want to ever go through again in my life,” Kevin told UWK.
A GoFundMe has been set up to help the men get back on their feet after the mobile home fire in Watson.
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