HAVERHILL — A 32-year-old Cook Lane resident is hospitalized in Boston due to burns he suffered last Friday in a mobile home fire that left several pets dead and destroyed his family’s home and belongings.
Nearly half of Donald Hande’s body was burned in the early morning fire. He was airlifted from the scene.
“He passed out from his injuries,” said Judi Bowling, Hande’s mother-in-law.
Hande’s wife, Ayla Stevens, had lacerations to her arms requiring stitches from breaking a window to rescue their 10-year-old son, A.J., who was also hospitalized due to smoke inhalation, said Bowling.
Their other two children, 6-year-old Nathan and 5-year-old Isaiah, had minor injuries and were transported by ambulance for medical care along with Stevens and A.J. Only Hande remains hospitalized.
The family also lost many of their beloved pets, including one of two dogs, a Corgi named Potato, and three cats, though multiple other cats escaped and remain on the loose as of Tuesday, said Bowling.
The fire destroyed their home and all of their belongings. The building was valued at just over $50,000, according to town property records. Stevens purchased it in November 2020.
The fire awoke Hande and Stevens at 4 a.m. on Friday and they sprang into action to get their three children and pets out of the home, which was fully engulfed in flames, according to Bowling.
In the chaos of the fire, Hande managed to get one dog, Everest, out of the home as Stevens made it outside with the two younger children, she said.
From outside, Hande and Stevens pulled their 10-year-old son A.J. out of the window, said Bowling.
When Haverhill Fire Chief Phillip Blanchard — who lives half a mile from Cook Lane — arrived on the scene shortly after 4 a.m., Hande and Stevens were outside, with their three children waiting at a neighbor’s home.
Woodsville and Bath, N.H., fire departments provided mutual aid, though they collectively used just one engine, connecting a hose to a fire hydrant. Firefighters knocked down the majority of the fire by 4:45, but Blanchard didn’t clear the scene until hours later.
He believes the fire originated in the kitchen area of the home and grew rapidly.
“Being a single-wide mobile home, there’s not a lot of egress. So if there’s any fire of any type, you’re kind of going through it one way or another,” said Blanchard.
Despite the severity of Hande’s injuries, Bowling said that he managed to get out of bed in the hospital on Monday.
Stevens and A.J. were recently released from the hospital for smoke inhalation, and are doing better, said Bowling. Isaiah celebrated his fifth birthday on Monday, just three days after the fire.
A.J., who has high-functioning autism, returned to school Tuesday, but Bowling said she was available to pick him up if he became overstimulated. Nolan, who is homeschooled and has more severe autism, according to Bowling, is struggling with the loss of Potato, who served as his emotional support dog.
Bowling brought Everest to the veterinarian Tuesday morning to be checked for smoke inhalation and possible burns.
The community has stepped up to try to locate the missing cats, said Bowling, adding that neighbors saw two of them on security cameras.
“The kids are very anxious,” she said. “They want their cats back.”
The family is currently staying at Bowling’s Wells River home. However, dairy farmer Paul Knox offered an apartment on his Haverhill property until September or October, which allows the family to remain in the same school district for the time being.
The loss of their belongings also created a new barrier for daily life.
“They lost all their homeschooling tablets and supplies and everything,” she said, adding that their car also melted. “They lost it all.”
Bowling created a GoFundMe fundraising page for donations to her daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren. It has raised nearly $1,400 as of Tuesday, with a $6,500 goal in mind. The funds are intended to help cover expenses, such as trips to Boston to be with Hande as he recovers, new learning tablets used for homeschooling and car repairs.
The property was not insured, the family does not have health insurance and Hande provided their only source of income. Bowling noted that medical bills will also be a struggle, and that the family hopes to provide a new emotional support dog for Isaiah.
The family has a refrigerator full of food donated by the community, Bowling said.
