"It's a weird feeling. ... I never thought I'd see the day I'd have to respond to a fire at my own house." -- Firefighter Woodrow McCarthy
MOSS POINT -- Woodrow McCarthy had to shake the shock and temporary paralysis from his mind and body when the emergency call came from the police dispatcher on Sunday afternoon.
As part of normal procedure to make sure firefighters have heard the correct address, they asked the dispatcher to again give the location of the house fire that was burning at 4507 Third Street.
He'd heard right the first time: His house was on fire.
"It was shock. Then you have that kind of mini-paralysis," he said about midday Monday.
The Moss Point homeowner was among about city personnel who rushed to the scene to put out the blaze in temperatures also ablaze in an ongoing heatwave. Three firefighters suffered heat exhaustion and were taken to the county hospital. They were treated and released.
"Three got heat exhaustion, but everybody pulled together and we did what we do. Nobody gave up on it," said the firefighter.
"It's a weird feeling. As many house fires as we respond to I never thought I'd have to respond to my own house," he said. "It's like that old saying, you have to laugh to keep from crying."
For just a moment, tears fell from his eyes and those of his wife's, Juanita, on Monday as they and other relatives went through burned furniture, smoke-damaged clothing, and photographs, even more precious now. Son Woodrow Jr. hugged his parents.
Fire inspector Robert Lavinghouse has said the house was a totally destroyed by fire and smoke. He estimated the older house sustained between $80,000 and $100,000 in damage.
"It appears to be an electrical short in the bedroom," said Lavinghouse.
McCarthy said he called his wife after the dispatcher reiterated the Third Street location. He'd wanted to make sure his family was okay. She'd made the 911 call when she and the children returned home from church about 2 p.m. to find the house on fire.
"When we pulled up from church they went in," said Juanita McCarthy. "As I was coming up on the porch they ran and met me saying the room was on fire. It was my daughter's room."
Chandorria McCarthy is 15; brother Kedarrius is 13 and Woodrow Jr. is 12.
Her emotions took over for a while. "I was just hysterical. I had to pull myself together because my children were hysterical."
After calling 911 she got a call from her husband.
"I said, 'Baby our house is on fire. Baby, it's burning, burning!' He said, 'I'm on my way, I'm on my way.' He said when he came he was stunned."
It took about eight hours to completely douse the fire, which was contained between 8 and 9 p.m., they said.
A unit from the Moss Point Fire Department, along with Lavinghouse and fire Chief Mike Dale returned to the scene Monday morning to check the attic and to determine the cause of the fire.
The McCarthy's and their younger son spent Monday with relatives outside at the house, finding shade under trees in the yard. Tears and relief were mixed as they were grateful to find many family photographs still intact.
"That to me was special. My twin was killed in a wreck years ago," said Juanita McCarthy. I was worried about the pictures I had of her that I had saved over the years."
She also found many mementos of school achievements earned by the children. She said the loss of furniture, clothes and other household items could be replaced.
"Thank God for my husband and children," the mother said.
