Sanford teens help family escape burning home

SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. — Officials say a home in Sanford was destroyed in a fire early Sunday morning.

The fire broke out at the home on Peach Avenue shortly after 2:00 a.m. Officials said the family was awakened by two teenagers banging on the door, alerting them to the fire.

The family of three is now getting assistance from the Red Cross after the fire displaced them.

Officials said the two teens who helped the family escape were banging on the doors and windows, trying to wake up the residents. They told WFTV it was a sight they'll never forget.

"It started right here, and it just burned as were were standing there, the fire got bigger and bigger right over us," said one of the teenagers, Taquan Lemon.

Lemon said he was walking home from a party with his brother and three other teens when they noticed the flames. At first, they yelled at the front door, but when no one answered they went to a window, in hopes of waking the family up.

"Corey came to the window and he was like 'we can't let this happen' and he just hit the window and it cracked," Lemon said.

Authorities said the teens helped as two occupants escaped out the front door and another climbed out a back window.

If it weren't for the teen's quick thinking, officials said the family may have not survived.

"I was just thinking, I can't let these people die. I wouldn't be able to live with that on my shoulders," Lemon told WFTV.

WFTV