A teenage girl is being called a hero after helping her three young siblings escape from a blaze at their home in Lundar, north of Winnipeg, on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, the girl and her family spoke out about the fire.
“We were sitting in the living room and my little brother called us into the room. The alarm clock caught on fire and caught on all the clothes,” said Sherisse Thorsteinson, 14.
She was babysitting her siblings at the time, ranging in age from eight to 10.
When they spotted the fire, she swiftly got her siblings out of the house.
On the way out, she called 911.
RCMP were first to arrive at the scene at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, with fire crews there moments later.
The home was completely engulfed by flames.
Among the fire personnel on scene was Jason Thorsteinson, the children’s father and a volunteer with the Lundar fire department.
“I came out here as a parent, but when I knew my kids were safe in town, I went to work with the fire department,” he said.
While Sherisse is being hailed as a hero, she said she believes her family would have made it out safely even without her efforts.
“I think it would have happened if I wasn’t there,” she said.
The family said it managed to save all but one of their pets. A pet bird perished in the blaze.
The Thorsteinsons said they’ve been receiving lots of community support since the fire and are grateful everyone made it out safely.
- with a report from CTV's Rajeev Dhir
