Virtual Open Mic: Tiffany Marr

My name is Tiffany Marr, I am the mother of 5 year old Clarissa. September 24th 2020 was supposed to be a day of happiness and celebration as it was Clarissa’s 5th birthday. Instead, it was one of the worse, most horrifying days of my life. A real life nightmare…

The night before Clarissa stayed up till 4am just so excited for it was the first year she actually understood what her birthday was. She stayed up singing happy birthday to herself, making sure mommy and daddy knew exactly how the song went so we got it right when it was time to light the candles on her cake and sing before she blew them out. That’s all she wanted for her birthday when we asked.

Waking up late the next day due to being exhausted, I got up to let my dogs out and check to see if my 2 kids where awake. Of course they were still sleeping so I out my dogs back in and went back to lay down myself and await for my birthday princess to awake from her beauty rest. As my head hit the pillow, next to my also still sleeping husband, I smelt smoke. Something burning. Instantly jumping back up and running into my living room I saw a little smoke coming from my kids room and my half asleep son walking towards me telling me sissys bed was on fire.

I screamed at my husband telling him to get up, we gotta go the house is on fire, get sissy. He instantly got up and ran for her as I grabbed my son and ran him out the back door. As soon as the door opened the entire house was in flames. I told my son to run to the neighbors and I went back in to help my husband. Standing outside my daughter’s room I couldn’t see anything but black smoke and fire. I heard my husband screaming “honey I can’t find her, where is she” all I could do was scream to God to help us.

Then I heard the sweet little voice of Clarissa yelling for her daddy. My husband came running out of the smoke with her in his arms. Both of them completely on fire. We ran towards the back door until my husband collapsed in our living room, throwing Clarissa towards me. I scooped her up and tried to help my husband. He pushed me away and told me to go.

I ran out the door with her in my arms, put the fire out on her, grabbed my son’s arm and just ran. The events between then and when EMS got there is still such a blur. When EMS took her from me and then my husband, all I could do was grab my son and sit on the ground watching my home burn till EMS took us. I kept asking where my baby was, where my husband was. I was told my husband got life flighted to Cabell Huntington Hospital in critical condition, and my daughter got life flighted to Nationwide Children’s in critical condition. After my son and I were released from the emergency room, I got calls from both hospitals telling me they weren’t going to make it.

I can’t even explain the feelings, the emotions, the helplessness. My husband suffered 2nd and 3rd degree burns over 30% of his body and 86% smoke inhalation. My daughter suffered 2nd, 3rd and 4th degree burns over 90% of her body. 181 days we spent in the hospital. I got told numerous times she wasn’t going to make it. She’s never be able to walk, talk, eat or do anything a normal 5 year old could do.

Today, shes still proving them all wrong and has beaten all the odds that were ever against her. We are all home in a new house, the 4 of us together again. Something that seemed impossible at one point in time.