On Saturday, Cammy Downing and her family stood together watching the home her grandfather built in the 1930’s crumble and burn to the ground.
The Wilmington Fire Department and other first responders put out the fire, but they were also the ones who set the home ablaze in the first place. That's because the family donated the home at 4822 Carolina Beach Road for a live training burn to practice controlling a house fire.
“My dad was a volunteer firefighter, so my big brother came up with the great idea of letting somebody use it as a training burn,” said Downing. “My granddaddy built the house in the late 30’s. My dad grew up in it. I grew up in it. Lived here almost half my life, so yeah, a lot of memories.”
Downing said her family initially rented the house after her parents passed away, but eventually it became too difficult to see renters not care for the home as much as her family did.