LAFAYETTE — Friday morning, a man woke up to his house ablaze when a mattress, against a gas furnace, caught on fire.
Ryan Thibodeaux's aunt stated, "People were moving out of the home and a mattress was shortly leaned up against the wall accident in front of the heater during the move. The house burned down in less than 10 minutes after the heater was turned on. He tried everything he could and it was not his fault."
Thibodeaux saved his neighbors in the duplex that morning, but lost his house and his truck.
His pet cat has not been located, they say.
Now, he has second degree burns on his hands and feet and is in the beginning stages of recovery at Ochsner LGMC where he has consults lined up with the burn unit for further treatment.
To help Ryan through his recovery, access the gofundme link here, https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-ryanthibodeaux-rebuild?utm_campaign=p_lico+share-sheet&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=customer.
KATC's article on Friday's fire:
One person was injured following an early morning house fire in Lafayette.
Lafayette firefighters were called to a house fire in the 100 block of Catherine Street at 2:25 Friday Morning. When first responders arrived on the scene they discovered a fully involved duplex and a vehicle on fire under a carport.
According to a spokesperson with the fire department, a mattress against a gas furnace ignited. An occupant in the house attempted to remove the burning mattress when other combustibles caught fire.
He alerted his neighbors to get everyone out of the home.
The occupant of the unit received burn injuries and was taken to the hospital by a friend.
The unit where the fire originated sustained heavy fire damage. The other unit, occupied by a family of 3, sustained smoke and water damage.
The cause of the fire was ruled an accident.
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