'Hero dog' saves woman from house fire

Shawn Cordell made a habit of telling the several dogs he and his wife, Terri, have adopted over the years to look after Terri.

"I always told them, the first thing you need to do is protect her," he said. "And Scooby did that."

If not for Scooby and his faithful companion, Banjo, Terri said, she wouldn't have lived through the house fire that raged through their Cloquet kitchen Dec. 19, filling the house with smoke and turning the kitchen and surroundings into a an unrecognizable charred and blackened mess. She calls him her "hero dog."

Shawn had left for work as a letter carrier in Duluth around 6:10 a.m., leaving Terri asleep upstairs, using her usual CPAP machine to treat sleep apnea. The machine also filters the air, so she was unaware that the air was filling with smoke.

"Scooby jumped up on me hard and started ripping blankets off me, doing circle spins - one way then another. Then he laid on top of me. That got my attention, because usually they would just come up and plop down on the bed," Terri said.

Terri didn't realize what was happening at first, but soon realized everything looked "filmy" because the air was smoky. Then she felt the bedroom floor, and it was hot. She ran to the bathroom to get some fresh air and then headed downstairs, the dogs helping her find her way, step by step.

When they got to the L-shaped kitchen, she stopped, feeling nauseous. It was then that she saw the orange glow and heard things crackling and snapping.

"I took my glasses off because they felt hot, but I didn't feel the heat from the fire," she said. "I got burned just standing at the end of the kitchen and not comprehending everything that happened. I didn't feel anything, I was just thinking about getting out."

She had to go through a baby gate to reach the back door and that's when the dogs panicked and turned around. They wouldn't cross through the heat. Banjo ran back upstairs, then Scooby.

Terri remembers yelling to the police and firefighters about her dogs, but that's about it. She was in shock, standing outside in her nightgown and no slippers in the snow.

The firefighters later found both dogs, dead from smoke inhalation. They found their kitty, Crazycat, in the basement, and Tweety the parakeet also perished.

Their lives changed dramatically that day, although Terri and Shawn are the first to admit things could have been far worse. She came out with second-degree burns to her face and hands, and remembers plunging them into the snow outside once she felt the pain.

But she is happy to be alive.

Police officers and firefighters were on the scene quickly, thanks to a neighbor who saw the fire. Terri ended up in the hospital for nearly a week, getting out on Dec. 26. At first they had her on a breathing tube because her throat started to swell shut, she said. Her hands and face are healing well, and she's due for a lung capacity test in March to see how her lungs are healing.

At least they had home and health insurance, the couple agreed.

"I have to be grateful," Terri said. "If it was gonna happen, better in December and not January because I'd already met my deductibles for 2018. Three different hospitals, an ambulance ride and a hospital stay ... I'm hoping insurance pays a chunk of it, but I'm sure we'll still need to pay some, and we're not rich."

Her daughter, Holly Anderson, started a GoFundMe page while Terri was still in the hospital, to help the couple with co-pays and other expenses that come with a hospital stay and a house fire.

It's been five weeks since the fire and they are still living in a room with two double beds at the Super 8 in Cloquet. It's a nice room, but not intended for long-term stays. They've been looking for a place to rent until their home can be demolished and they can build a new one, and found one on Wednesday.

Still, they said the staff at the Super 8 have been wonderful, and so have many other people and places, including their church.

"River of Life Church put it on their website, and the pastor and his wife and congregation members have provided meals, financial support and prayer to help support us," Terri said. "Our neighbors have been great too, from financial support to keeping our driveway and sidewalk clear of snow. People I don't know have donated on GoFundme. People from [Shawn's] work have given gift cards and extra uniforms for him. So much outpouring. You never know how much love there is until something like this happens."

Want to help?

Terri Cordell’s daughter, Holly Anderson, started a GoFundMe page online, with a goal of raising $10,000 to help her mom and stepdad get back on their feet following the house fire that totaled their house in December. Search for “Please Help the Cordell Family” at http://www.gofundme.com.