CAMERON, Mo. — A neighbor and his friend saved a boy from a house fire in Cameron, Missouri, just before 4 p.m. on Sunday.
Neighbors say a woman in her 50s died in the fire at 424 N. Nettleton Street.
"I just hate that she lost her life," neighbor Mark Dahse said. "That’s bad, but I guess at least one life was saved out of it. It’s the best way to look at it. It’s a sad deal all the way around.”
Dahse said he was watching TV at his house across the street when he heard multiple explosions. He said he looked outside and saw the front porch engulfed in flames.
"Me and a friend of mine busted the window out and got the boy out," Dahse said. "There was no getting her out because the house was already too engulfed."
Dahse is a longtime resident of his house on N. Nettleton Street. He said he knew the boy he saved and the woman who died.
He said there were multiple oxygen tanks in the home.
"I helped them out quite a bit when they needed help," he said.
Dahse said residents of the neighborhood help each other out and that "everybody knows everybody."
"She (the woman who died) was very well-liked," he said. "She was a nice lady."
Less than a day after Dahse saved the boy's life, he got to ask him how he's doing.
"He's alright," he said. "I talked to the mom and boy this morning when I was on my way to work and they're doing fine."
Cameron police and fire departments expressed their gratitude to Dahse and his friend and the first responders who handled the fire in a press release.
With assistance from the Cameron Police Detectives Division, the Missouri State Fire Marshals Office is currently investigating the cause of the fire. Officials say updates will be provided as they become available.
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