Over 20 people are displaced after a fire destroyed a building at the Ile des Cannes apartment complex, but they are thankful to be alive.
Everyone got out safely, and they ware working to salvage their belongings. Some families say they owe their lives to one Lafayette Parish sheriff’s deputy.
“The only thing I remember is sitting up and saying, ‘What the heck?’ I was sleeping on the couch, and the cops told me to leave, and I was like, ‘I’m not leaving; my family is upstairs,” Christy Babin said.
Deputy Jacob Sampy was the voice yelling at her to leave.
“I kicked the door in. My partner and I went upstairs and made sure everyone was out,” Sampy explained.
Babin said she didn’t initially realize the house was on fire.
“He was like, ‘You have to get to safety. I said, ‘I cannot leave my family behind. I kept hollering, ‘Y’all come on!’ Once they were out, I ran out with them,” Babin said.
She and her family weren’t the only people who needed to get to safety. Deputy Sampy and other deputies worked until every house was clear.
“Well, honestly, the whole burning building wasn’t on my mind. The only thing that was on my mind, really, was to get people out. I know in a panic, a lot of people may forget their kid or may forget there are other people in the house, but me and my partners, our main focus was to get people out,” Sampy said.
“[I’m] very thankful. Everything else is irrelevant. Like I said, my family’s life and my life are much more important than anything. To our community here at Ile des Cannes, thank you. To the officer who kicked in the door, thank you so much. My family is eternally grateful,” Babin expressed through tears.
