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Muse Elementary student saves her family from house fire

3 min read
Nevaeh Ellis

Nevaeh Ellis knows what a sore throat feels like. But the sore throat she was suffering from while in bed Jan. 9 was a little different.

“I thought it was a sore throat but this hurt even more,” the 7-year-old Canonsburg girl and student at Muse Elementary School said. “I told my parents my throat was really hurting.”

Nevaeh could not ignore the pain and sensation and, thankfully, she got out of bed to alert her parents something was wrong. It was more than a sore throat. Nevaeh’s quick thinking alerted her family to an early-morning fire in the laundry room that allowed them to escape their Valley View Terrace home unscathed.

“My dad smelled something so he went an looked and he told my mom to call 911,” Nevaeh said. “I started upstairs with my mom and got some water in the bathroom and then my dad said we should all go outside. “We went down the steps and couldn’t breathe.”

Nevaeh and her family, which includes her mother, Ashley, father, John, and four brothers, ages 2 to 6, stood outside for about 10 minutes before going to a neighbor’s house.

“I was thinking it was a big fire,” the girls said. “I was crying because I thought the house would burn up.”

Canonsburg firefighters responded to the scene and extinguished the fire, which was caused by an electrical problem in the dryer.

For her heroic effort, Nevaeh was honored with a plaque from Canonsburg Mayor David H. Rhome, at the Jan. 14 borough council meeting.

The award reads, “For efforts in the preservation of life, Mayor David H. Rhome and the Canonsburg Council present Nevaeh Ellis with the Life Saving Award. On January 9, 2019 the Canonsburg Volunteer Fire Department responded to a call in Valley View Terrace. 7-year-old Nevaeh was awakened with a sore throat. When she woke her parents to tell them, they realized there was a strong smell of smoke in the house which led them to investigate, finding the source in the laundry room. We commend Nevaeh for her heroic actions in alerting her family. All family members demonstrated their fire prevention skills to “get out and stay out” until the fire department arrives. Tragedy was averted and all are safe.”

Nevaeh is grateful for the award but especially pleased to help save her family.

“I am so happy and glad to save my family,” she said.

Tula Dziak, principal at Muse Elementary, said Nevaeh is “definitely a hero” and her action and willingness to move when she felt something was wrong is a good example of taking charge of a situation and ending up saving lives.

“She’s a hero,” Dziak said. “If it (flames) hits the gas stove not only would her house have been impacted, but those of her neighbors as well. Nevaeh is a hero to her family, her school and her neighborhood.”

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