Hero Stranger Saves 4 Sleeping Siblings from House Fire after Accidentally Taking a Wrong Turn

While driving to drop someone off, an Iowa man accidentally took a wrong turn and ended up in front of a house almost engulfed by flames. He immediately got out of his car and shouted, hoping to alert the trapped residents.

Brendon Birt had never imagined making it to the news after mistakenly turning his car in the wrong direction. It was a usual night when he was on the road to drop someone.

Like most of us, Birt must have regretted taking the wrong turn, but he later discovered it was part of fate's plans to help four siblings who had no idea their house was on fire. He arrived at the burning house's front door just in time.

The House on Fire

When Birt spotted the blazing Red Oak, Iowa house in the early hours of October 23, 2022, he assumed the residents must be sleeping inside, so he immediately jumped out of his car to help them.

Before alerting the trapped residents, Birt dialed 911 and then banged on the doors and windows of the house. He even shouted and hoped his voice would reach the people inside the house. He said:

"I just knew I had to act quick."

The Siblings

Birt suspected there were people inside the house, and he was right. Three children rushed out of the front door just moments after he acted on his gut feeling. The doorbell camera footage showed how they escaped the flames.

The eldest of the siblings was a 22-year-old boy who couldn't hear the commotion because he was playing games wearing his headset.

"They came out the door [and] I just felt like I just wanted to break down and cry," Birt admitted. The children who emerged from the house were aged 8, 14, and 17. However, they were not the only people in the house.

Orange Lights

One of the older girls said she heard Birt shouting but didn't know he was trying to alert them about the fire. It wasn't until she saw orange lights through her window that she realized her house was on fire. She recalled:

"First, I got my sister, and then my brother, and then we ran out of the house."

Moments later, Birt saw another boy rushing out of the main door. The eldest of the siblings was a 22-year-old boy who couldn't hear the commotion because he was playing games wearing his headset. He was alerted after he realized his siblings were awake.

Escaped on Time

When he got out to see why his brother and sisters were awake, he realized he needed to run out of the front door. He escaped right before the flames began to spread.

The children's mother, Tender Lehman, was out of town for a family emergency while her husband was at work. Lehman was eternally grateful to Birt for helping her children escape on time. She said:

"My kids wouldn't have made it. They are safe because of him."

A Huge Loss

While the family was safe, they lost their pets in the house fire. Only two of their dogs safely made it out of the house, while five others died of smoke inhalation.

The family's entire house had burned down, and have nowhere to go. Currently, they are living in a borrowed camper, but they are in dire need of help. Lehman's mother, Windy Monjarez, set up a GoFundMe page to help the family. Monjarez said:

"They are homeless and have nothing left."

Monjarez aims to raise $30,000 through the online fundraiser. She has raised more than $18,000 through 354 donations and hopes people will help her achieve her goal.

Meanwhile, Lehman said Birt is now like family because he saved her children. Things would have been much worse if he didn't stop to get the children out.

The Reaction

Even netizens were amazed to learn how a stranger became a hero with his kind act. They left messages of support for Birt and the family. Here are some of the comments from "Inside Edition's" Facebook post about the incident:

"Simply an act of God that this man took a wrong turn."

― (@Niecie Annette) November 1, 2022

"Oh wow! I'm so happy they made it out alive. So sad those other four-legged members of the family didn't make it. That was no wrong turn. God sent him at the right time."

― (@Nola Wright) November 1, 2022

"Mr. Birt, you actually took the correct turn. You ended up right where the universe needed you. Because if you hadn't 'taken the wrong turn,' a set of parents would be burying their four children and suffering unimaginable heartbreak."

― (@Amanda Rybicki Bockheim) November 1, 2022

"It was a divine appointment by God. [...] God used you to save those children." ― (@Mary Williams) November 1, 2022

"That guy saved the whole family, including two dogs. Wow, he's a real hero. We need more people like him. May God bless that family and him. Amen." ― (@Dylan Fernández) November 1, 2022

Birt's inspirational story teaches us that we should always help others whenever we can, even if that means going out of our way to save someone's life.

Click here to read another story about a heroic Oklahoma girl who saved her four younger siblings from a deadly fire that destroyed their house.