'Get out now!': Passerby rouses family ahead of flames engulfing home
A quick-witted stranger on her way to work acted fast to alert a sleeping Windsor family their home was ablaze.
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“She saved us.”
Those words sum up the gratitude of a Windsor family who narrowly escaped a house fire last week — all because a stranger trusted her instincts.
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Sylvie Logan was asleep downstairs with her four children when “pounding” at the front door woke her around 5 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 8.
Outside stood Karla Field, a personal care attendant on her way to work, who spotted smoke and flames coming from the family’s Tourangeau Road home in central Windsor.
“I saw what I thought was fog,” Field, 39, told the Star. “Then I smelled smoke — strong smoke — and then I saw the flames. It almost looked like an explosion.
“I called 911 right away and I ran to the door and started banging really loud.”
Logan said she felt a moment of fear before her boyfriend answered the door and heard Field’s urgent warning.
“She told us, ‘You’re on fire — get out now!'” Logan said.
The couple gathered the children and their dog, escaping moments before the fire began to spread beyond the garage into the rest of the home.
Firefighters arrived within minutes and managed to contain the blaze before it fully engulfed the house.
“The fire chief said we were moments away from losing the entire house,” Logan said. “If it hadn’t been for her (Field), the house would have been burned down.”
Fire crews worked quickly to knock down the flames and prevent further damage. The garage sustained the most destruction, with intense heat causing additional damage to parts of the home.
No one was physically injured.
Fire officials told Logan the blaze may have been sparked by the battery of an electric lawnmower she had recently purchased, but said there was no sign of anything suspicious or any clear cause.
The family is now staying with relatives as they assess the damage and plan their next steps.
“We lost a lot, but we still have each other,” Logan said. “That’s what matters.”
Speaking to the Star Tuesday, Field said she’s thankful she happened to be driving that route to work last Friday, adding she knew she “had to stop.”
“I couldn’t just drive by and pretend I didn’t see it,” Field said. “I’m just glad everyone is OK.”
For Logan, the reality of how close her family came to disaster is still sinking in.
“I keep thinking about how we had been trapped,” she said. “It’s terrifying, but we’re safe and that’s what matters.”
After the fire, Field reached out to the family on social media to check on their well-being. Logan said she was overwhelmed but grateful for Field’s kindness and bravery.
“You don’t expect a stranger to stop like that,” said Logan. “She didn’t have to — but she did. She’s our hero.”
Field downplayed the praise she has since received on social media, saying she was just following her instincts.
“After the fact, seeing all the comments calling me a hero and an angel — that was really hard to swallow.
“I wouldn’t go that far — I hope someone else would do the same.”
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