An Oakland man said he could “feel his body cooking” while he and his brother-in-law rescued his sister and the couple’s 15-year-old son as flames devoured their mobile home early Saturday morning on Webb Road in Oakland.
According to his sister, Melissa Pike, 41, her brother, Michael Bagley, 46, and her husband, Charles McIntyre, 42, saved her and her son Dakota’s lives in the fire. She thinks they deserve hero medals.
“My brother Michael ran through the kitchen where the fire was, going to my bedroom where I was, to save me,” Pike said Tuesday from Maine Medical Center in Portland. “Michael told me yesterday that going back through that fire to save me, he could feel and hear his body cooking as he was running through the kitchen.”
While her brother was rushing to get her out of the burning home, Melissa said McIntyre pulled their 15-year-old son, Dakota Pike, “right over the couch to get him out because Dakota had lost contact in the smoke and he was frightened.”
“Charles was yelling for him, ‘Follow my voice. My arms are out. Reach out and grab my arms,’ and when he felt his arms, he grabbed him and ripped him right over the couch and out the door.”
Michael Bagley and Dakota Pike were taken to the Portland hospital with second-degree burns on their faces, arms, legs and backs. They remained there recovering Tuesday.
The family was asleep when the fire started about 4:30 a.m. Saturday in the kitchen. The sound of smoke detectors woke them up, fire officials said.
Melissa Pike said her son, who is mentally disabled, woke up to the sound of a smoke detector and when he opened the door to his room, it filled up with smoke. His father opened an outside door, the living room became engulfed in smoke and he lost sight of Dakota, she said.
“That’s when he got scared and he yelled, ‘I can’t see you, Dad. I can’t see you,'” Melissa Pike said.
She said the fire left a dog and five cats still unaccounted for Tuesday. Her daughter, who lives nearby, goes to the mobile home a couple times each day to call for the dog, named Buddy, but he hasn’t come.
The pets probably perished in the fire, Melissa Pike said.
Oakland Fire Chief David Coughlin said an electrical wiring problem in the kitchen caused the fire. He said investigators from the Office of the State Fire Marshal ruled the fire accidental.
Fire crews from Belgrade, Sidney, Rome and Smithfield assisted at the scene, as did Delta Ambulance, Oakland police and Central Maine Power Co.
Pike said she spent two nights, including Tuesday night, at the Ronald McDonald House in Portland. She said the family had renter’s insurance to cover their belongings lost in the fire. The American Red Cross is helping the family.
She said her son plays on the Unified Basketball Team at Messalonskee High School in Oakland. She said last year Dakota received a special certificate as a player and was proud of it. Melissa Pike said that certificate was lost in the fire.
The Unified Basketball Team dedicated its Tuesday afternoon game against Cony to the family and set out a donation can at the door for them, according to coach Tommy Hill. Teammates also made a poster for Dakota Pike that included his name and team number — 01 — a reference to his love of the “Dukes of Hazzard” TV show.
“The kids did a nice job, and they are thinking of him,” Hill said Tuesday night. “We’re all doing the best we can to help out. Dakota is such a happy-go-lucky young man.”
Doug Harlow — 612-2367
Twitter:@Doug_Harlow
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.