Detroit mom escapes burning home with children

A Detroit mother has reasons to smile -  even as she watches flames destroy her home early this morning on the city's east side.

"This is what I have left, oh God help me," said Tomecka Singleton. 

But Singleton is feeling blessed she and her children made it out alive of their home, near I-94 and Connor.

Wednesday morning her 18-year-old son, Paul, starting yelling.

"It was 5:30 in the morning and he hollered fire, it startled me - I came through the hallway and the flames met me."

Heavy smoke and flames were spreading from the kitchen. Tomecka had no choice but to go to the ground and crawl.

She grabbed her 7-year-old son, Ryan.

"I put him on my back and we crawled to the front door," she said. "We were basically just in the dark crawling, and we made it to the door. It was only God's grace that we made it to the door."

Caaleb, 14, was coming down the stairs but panicked when he saw the fire and turned around. Paul chased after him.

"He ran back up and my son ran back up and got him."

"(I ran) as fast as I can," Paul said. "Just hurried up and got to them and get them out of here."

"By the time he drug him back down," Tomecka said. "The firefighters were there and they were holding the doors open."

Tomecka says she had a fire escape plan but was too frantic to remember it, but is glad her smoke detector woke her son before it, too, was destroyed by the fire.

"Here it is - where my smoke detector burned," she said. "It was flashing and we were just scrambling."

Their scrambling saved their lives. As Tomecka surveys the damage she points to a smoke-stained image on the wall of the kitchen - where the fire started. 

She says she sees Jesus.

"That's what saved us," Tomecka said.

Firefighters told her the cause of the fire appears to be electrical.

This family really has lost everything but the Red Cross is offering some help - and she says she's staying positive - and prayerful.

"We got out safely so I think God is going to help us again," she said. "yes, I'm hopeful."

 

If you would like to help the family, there is a GoFundMe page: http://www.gofundme.com/xt32j2k