Fire destroys house, stops at scriptures written on studs

LIVINGSTON PARISH, La. (WAFB) - Except for several wall studs where Bible scriptures are written, a fire completely destroyed a home off Lobell Road in Livingston Parish Sunday night.

The fire started around 7 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 2 and burned until midnight. Seven people were home at the time of the fire, according to the family, and each made it out alive and unharmed.

“We just shut the door and ran,” 16-year-old resident Rebecka Lovett said. “We think of everything we lost and can’t really replace it. But we’ll get there eventually.”

The home was a total loss. At least one pet, a bird, died in the fire. The family is spending their Monday searching for a number of other pets, including kittens and dogs, that might have made it out of the home before the roof collapsed.

Investigators have not determined how the fire began, but the Lovett family says it believes the fire was electrical. Rebecka’s mother and father say they heard popping in the garage and found the entire area engulfed when they investigated.

Soon after the family escaped the home, at least one propane tank, several guns, and a motorcycle exploded in the garage.

“The kids were jumping over fire and running through smoke, trying to get animals out of the house,” Rebecka’s aunt Kacey Chaisson, who was not in the home, said. Chaisson spoke on behalf of the family Monday.

The Lovetts asked friends and other family members to write Bible verses on the wall studs to “bless” their home before its completion in 2017. Between 60 and 80 verses are scribbled on the bare wood, including some written by family members who have since passed.

“My grandparents were praying people,” Chaisson said. “The fire spread up through the attic and those studs that are standing there with the scriptures may very well have saved their lives by giving them enough time for all seven people to get out of the house unharmed.”

Livingston Parish Fire Protection District #2 posted a series of photos to Facebook.

“What caught our eyes was that the homeowners had written scriptures on wall studs through the house. The fire stopped at the scriptures!!” the post read.

“Nothing else matters if we don’t have our family,” Chaisson said. “The fact that they’re all standing here safe and sound is just a miracle. That’s all there is to it.”

The Lovett family is staying in a local hotel until they can find a more permanent living situation.

“This gave me goosebumps,” one Facebook user said in the comments.

“A truth that truly defies human understanding,” said another comment.

Chaisson has created a donation page for the Lovett family. You can donate by clicking here.

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