A rural Jasper County family lost their home in a Christmas Day fire that also sent a Carthage firefighter to the hospital with a knee injury.
Carthage Deputy Fire Chief David Myers said the home, located at 8209 Locust Road, is a total loss after the fire that started sometime before 1:40 p.m. on Tuesday.
Myers said a Carthage Firefighter was battling the blaze from the roof of a porch when he rolled over and twisted his knee.
The firefighter was taken by ambulance to Mercy Carthage Hospital for treatment, and Myers didn’t know the severity of the injury as of late Christmas evening.
Myers said the couple who lived in the home was away at the time of the fire and no one else was injured.
Firefighters from Avilla, Jasper and Oronogo helped fight the fire.
Myers said the cause of the fire was still under investigation by local investigators as of late Tuesday evening.
In a post on its Facebook page, The Harvest Community Church, located west of Avilla on Highway 96, said it was accepting donations for Lonnie and Sherry Evans, who lived in the home.
Harvest Community Church Pastor Waylon “Bub” Miller said someone had offered a home with some basic household goods for the couple to use.
“They’re pretty much overwhelmed,” Miller told The Carthage Press on Christmas evening. “At this moment, until the insurance on the home is settled, the best way to help them would probably be with cash.”
On its Facebook page, the church said someone would be at the church between 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday to accept donations or they can be mailed to Harvest Community Church, P.O. Box 41, Avilla, Mo., 64833.
“Lonnie and Sherry appreciate all the love and encouragement,” the Church’s Facebook page said. “I hope we can all rally together to help make this time less burdensome for them. Everyone who knows this family, knows what giving and kind-hearted people they are.”
