LILLIAN, Ala. - A building in Lillian caught fire Sunday morning and was declared a total loss, but the three people inside made it out safely, Andrew Gnoza — captain and public information officer with the Lillian Volunteer Fire Department — said.

    "There's nothing left now. It's just part of a shell," Gnoza said.

    Gnoza said the Escambia County Fire Department, Perdido Beach Fire Department, Elberta Fire Department and Josephine Fire Department all responded to the incident to help the Lillian VFD.

    Heroic help

    According to Gnoza, the Lillian VFD received notice of the incident at around 9 a.m. The two-story brick home in Spanish Cove caught fire with the grandparents downstairs and a grandchild upstairs, Gnoza said. When the smoke detector went off and black smoke was seen, the woman escaped the home and her husband went upstairs to get the child, Gnoza said.

    According to Gnoza, when the man tried to head back downstairs, the smoke blocked the route, but nearby neighbors responded by bringing ladders which allowed the man and child to escape.

    Gnoza said the actions of the neighbors "saved the grandfather and grandchild's life."

    Kay Chastain, administrative assistant at the Spanish Cove Residential Community office, said John Mudra, who was on security at the time, and Edna Mero, a pool attendant, were the first to respond to the fire and notify the Lillian VFD.

    One of the nearby neighbors who responded, Gary Watkins, said he went to the scene and was handed a six-foot ladder, which he set up near the window.

    "I live a little further away. I just happened to be down on the beach and saw the smoke," Watkins, a Navy J-ROTC instructor at Robertsdale High School, said. "A lady showed up with a six-foot ladder and I grabbed it and took it to the window."

    Watkins was able to get the child out of the house safely using the small ladder, but he needed a taller ladder brought by another nearby neighbor to get the grandfather out of the house.

    "I couldn't get him down, and another lady ran up with a longer ladder. So I grabbed that ladder and put it up there," he said.

    When Watkins asked if anyone else was in the house, the grandfather said his dog was still in danger. The grandfather climbed back up the ladder and secured the dog to safety.

    "I don't think (the dog) was injured," Watkins said.

    Watkins said the area was dangerous with things exploding from the heat.

    "The truck was on fire in the driveway, and the window was on the other side of the house. It was about 30 feet. The fire started blowing up and the windows started popping out.

    "You see these movies where the gas tank explodes and the whole truck gets thrown into the air. It wasn't a major concern. You just didn't want to get too close."

    If the neighbors had not responded so quick and been so resourceful and brave, Chastain said "it could have been a really bad situation.

    "They were willing to go to all efforts to help these people."