A mom from Tennessee managed to survive a house fire by jumping from the second floor while pregnant with twins. This near-death experience happened on September 15 to Katie Barker, according to Cleveland 19.
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Pregnant Mom With Twins Escapes Fire By Leaping From Second Floor Of Home
The 7-months-pregnant woman woke up to flames erupting in her Soddy-Daisy home that Monday afternoon, per her GoFundMe. Due to an alleged electrical issue, the fire sparked, all while her husband, David Barker, was picking up their 6-year-old daughter, Ember, from school.
“Katie was in the top section of their home, unable to go down the fire blocked stairs,” wrote the description. The mother revealed to the news outlet why she made the daring decision to jump from the second floor.
“It was either risk breaking bones or then plan a funeral,” said Katie. “I have an older daughter, a 6-year-old and then two little boys that are in my belly that are counting on me, and I couldn’t leave my husband.”
Katie made the brave decision of jumping from two-stories high to save both her life and the life of her twin boys. She leaped from the back of her home, while Soddy-Daisy police officers attempted to ease her landing.
“I just kind of leaned out the window on my side, and I landed on my knee and my hip and my back,” Katie recalled.
Although the mother survived, she is suffering from a broken pelvis, a compressed vertebra, and severe smoke inhalation. Luckily, her twins are perfectly healthy and weren’t affected by the fall.
“My pelvis is stable, even though it’s broken, so I am able to do physical therapy to learn how to walk again,” said Katie. “Right, now my muscles in my right leg don’t want to work completely.”
Police Didn’t Hesitate To Save Family
As soon as she escaped, Katie told officers that her father-in-law was still inside. He uses a wheelchair, so officers rushed inside to save him.
“As soon as I told the officers, without hesitation or any kind of protection, they ran into the den… and they got him out,” Katie explained.
Unfortunately, the fire destroyed the entire home, and three of their cats didn’t make it out. “Every building, rewiring, everything that was in the kitchen was completely – it’s ashes now,” she said.
Katie, despite losing her family’s cats, is grateful to have had help from the police. “There are good people out there,” she said. “There are people that care and are willing to step in and help at a moment’s notice.”
The pregnant mother also managed to stay lighthearted about the situation. “I wish I would have stuck the landing a little better,” said Katie while laughing.