A family of five is thankful to be alive after they safely escaped an early morning house fire in Arlington on Thursday.
The family's pets, which include three ferrets and dozens of snakes, died in the fire.
Jerry Fernandes said his wife, son, 8-month-old granddaughter and brother were all asleep when the house caught on fire.
The smell of smoke woke Fernandes's brother, Jeff, who was asleep on the couch.
“When I woke up, I went into the kitchen, the back corner of the house, there was no fire. But outside the window, I could see fire and as I said, the whole ceiling was full of smoke. So, it had to be electrical,” Jeff Fernandes said.
He jumped into action and alerted the rest of the family to get out.
"I was trying to look at where the fire was. Already, the house was engulfed," Jerry said.