‘They came out with their lives:’ Man remembers saving residents during Louisville shelter fire

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - Nearly a week after a fire at the St. Vincent de Paul shelter displaced 26 people, the man who helped save the people from the smoke talked about his experience.

The fire happened Wednesday at the shelter on the corner of Kentucky Street and Preston Street in Louisville’s Shelby Park neighborhood.

An LFD spokesperson said Monday the fire started inside one of the units because a child was playing with a lighter.

Firefighters needed roughly 15 minutes to put the fire out.

Nobody was hurt, thanks in part to Julio Anthony, St. Vincent de Paul’s program director. Anthony ran into the smoking building to help neighbors evacuate.

“You couldn’t see nothing,” Anthony said. “Right when you hit that door, opened that door there, like I said, from that apartment to here; smoke, carbon monoxide, smoke. It was real tough.”

Anthony told WAVE News he was coaching his AAU basketball team nearby when he saw people calling for help from St. Vincent de Paul’s campus.

“When I get outside, she’s like, ‘Look, it’s a fire,’” Anthony said. “And I’m like, ‘Oh shoot.’ So, she was like, ‘There are people inside.’ And I’m like, ‘OK.’”

He ran into the building, knocking on the apartment doors and encouraging the residents to get out of the building before the fire worsened.

In total, Anthony helped evacuate more than two dozen people, saving lives before firefighters could get on scene.

“[There was] pitch black smoke,” Anthony said. “Everybody was running, crying. I’m banging on doors, ‘Get out, get out, get out.’ Run upstairs to the third floor to get everybody out, hollering.”

While crews worked to battle the flames, Anthony and his colleague, Dominique Batts, worked to move the residents into a safe space and organize new places for them to stay.

“It was the case manager on scene, our mental health counselor was on scene,” Batts said. “So we were able to really give them some good comfort and support in the midst of that crazy situation and we can be somebody that they trust to help them get through that situation.”

In the days since the fire, Batts said the American Red Cross provided a stipend for the residents to stay in hotels and apartments. Because the damage to the building was not catastrophic, Batts said some of the residents were able to move back into their units on St. Vincent de Paul’s campus.

On Wednesday, Anthony went back up to the second floor for the first time since the fire.

The walls were still covered in soot, while the smell of smoke lingered in the air.

Still, he was happy to know his actions made a difference.

“Just being able to see everybody was able to make it out, it was a blessing,” Anthony said. “They came out with their lives, that’s the main thing.”

Batts told WAVE News the shelter needs donations to help the families affected by the fire. Their greatest needs are children’s clothes and shoes and school supplies.

To donate to St. Vincent de Paul, click or tap here.

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