Wright City

Two Wright City Citizens save neighbor from house fire

By Jack Underwood, Staff Writer
Posted 10/24/24

Wright City Mayor Michelle Heiliger and her friend Kim Fast were able to save her neighbor from a house fire on Oct. 12.

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Wright City

Two Wright City Citizens save neighbor from house fire

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Wright City Mayor Michelle Heiliger and her friend Kim Fast were doing some work in her garage on the morning of Oct. 12, when they realized something was terribly wrong. 

“I heard her yell ‘Hey! There’s something going on at your neighbor’s house,’” said Heiliger. “And so I stepped out, … and there was just this black smoke billowing out of the garage.”

Heiliger’s neighbor, who uses a wheelchair, had been working in his garage and the sparks had ignited a flame. That flame caught fire to his wheelchair and while he was able to extricate himself from the wheelchair, he was still trapped in the burning garage. 

Fast was the first of the two who arrived at the house, and immediately began trying to pull the neighbor out of his garage but she was unable to remove him on her own. 

“Michelle was coming but I was yelling ‘faster!’ so barefoot and all she came and we dragged him out into the driveway,” said Fast. 

Heiliger was on the phone with 911 when Fast called for aid, and she hung up and responded immediately. 

“I heard Kim yell ‘I need you right now’ and so I said, I gotta go, and I hung up on 911 and ran,” said Heiliger. “And when I ran up to the house, the entire garage is engulfed in flames and he’s laying on the garage floor, and Kim is trying to pull him out by herself.”

After they got the neighbor out of the house she called 911 back and was able to get firefighters dispatched to their location. 

According to a press release from the Wright City Fire Protection District, Wright City firefighters responded to the call along with assistance from the Warrenton and Wentzville Fire Protection Districts. 

The Lincoln County Fire Protection District provided coverage at Wright City Fire’s Station 1 while the call was handled. 

Shortly after firefighters arrived, the garage door collapsed, closing off the garage, according to the press release. Thankfully, they were able to regain entry, and put out the fire. 

Wright City Fire Protection Chief Ron MacKnight wanted to thank the women for their actions. 

“Their courage in the face of danger and quick actions made a significant difference in a critical situation and is truly commendable,” said MacKnight in the press release. 

Heiliger and Fast said their decision to act was based on instinct, and that they were just glad they happened to be in the right place at the right time. 

“I have a whole new respect for people who do this for a living,” said Heiliger, who is also the President of the Wright City Fire Protection District’s Board of Directors. 

While the homeowners are working through the insurance process, in the moment agencies that provide aid are not always able to respond quickly enough, so through the David Heiliger Memorial Foundation, Heiliger was able to get her neighbor, and his elderly mother who was not home when the fire occurred, a hotel that would accommodate them and their pets while they figured out what to do next. 

“We had guardian angels watching over us that made all the things happen the way they needed to happen to make that successful,” said Heiliger. “And from what I understand, their house can be saved, so it’s just moving forward at this point.”

To respect the wishes of the residents of the home, they have not been named in this article.

Wright City, House Fire

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