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Last updated on Monday, December 19, 2016
(SEYMOUR) - A Seymour Police officer and his family have lost their home and belongings in an early-morning house fire on Sunday.
According to the Seymour Tribune, Gilbert and Amy Carpenter and their two high-school aged children, Zach and Haley, were able to escape the blaze without injury, according to Seymour Police Chief Bill Abbott.
Officer Carpenter told Chief Abbott that he woke up around 3:38 a.m. to the popping and crackling sound of flames at his home in the 9700 block of County Road 200 East near Cortland.
The Carpenter's heat their home with a wood burning stove.
By the time Officer Carpenter entered the hallway, the attic was engulfed in flames.
Chief Abbott says Carpenter was able to get his family and some Christmas presents out of the home, but everything else was destroyed.
Hamilton Township, Pershing Township and Jonesville volunteer firefighters responded to the fire. Firefighters were on the scene for more than two hours.
Firefighters hauled water to the scene and had to negotiate icy road conditions. Jackson County Highway crews assisted by putting sand and salt on the roadways.
The Seymour Tribune reports that fellow Seymour officer Deven Cornwell has set up a GoFundMe page to help raise money for the Carpenters. Friends, family and the community are rallying behind the family and 45 people had donated $2,710 in two hours Sunday.
Anyone wanting to donate can visit www.gofundme.com/officer-carpenter.
Gilbert Carpenter has been an officer with Seymour Police Department for nearly 15 years and has served as the lead D.A.R.E. officer for the past two years working directly with children to help prevent drug and alcohol use.
Also stepping up to assist the family is the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 108, of which Gilbert is a member.
Donations can also be made at the Seymour Police Department, 205 N. Ewing St.
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