Thornton – Clinging to her new pink and white bunny and showing all the seriousness of a seasoned firefighter, 5-year-old Victoria Bustillos explained why she stayed so focused while smoke filled her family’s home last week.
“The firefighters told me to stay calm so when I smelled smoke I grabbed my little sister’s hand and got my brother and went outside,” Victoria said today. “It was pretty scary, but I wanted them safe because they were the only blood I had.”
Victoria got her 3-year-old sister, Jessica, and 1-year-old brother, Samuel, out of their home just before firefighters arrived to put out the blaze that started in the family’s clothes dryer.
No one was seriously hurt although Victoria’s dad suffered minor burns on his hands trying to put out the fire. There was also minor smoke damage in the home on Birch Court.
Victoria’s actions were remarkable, say Thornton firefighters, who had been at Riverside Elementary just a week before the Oct. 7 blaze to teach Victoria and her classmates how to react to a fire.
“Sometimes you wonder how much of what we say sinks in,” said public education officer Angela Cataldo. “But we were able to teach her enough so she was able to use it in this situation. It’s just amazing.”
The firefighters emphasized working out a fire plan with their families, which included finding a “meeting place” where family members could gather out of harm’s way.
Victoria insisted on working out the plan just days before the fire. Victoria’s mom, Janet, admits she went along with the Victoria just to humor her.
“I just wanted to make her happy,” Janet Bustillos said. “But it paid off.”
When the fire started, Janet Bustillos says she panicked, while Jessica adhered strictly to the lessons she learned.
Once Victoria smelled smoke, she gathered her siblings at the first designated meeting place at the foot of the stairs of the three-story home.
Then, she and her siblings headed out a side door to the family’s truck – the second designated meeting place.
“I was running around, trying to call 911, trying to keep track of my children and worrying about my husband in the basement fighting the fire,” Janet Bustillos said. “I hate to hear the 911 tape because I know I sounded crazy.”
Victoria also chastised her parents for not strictly adhering to the fire plan, which called for them to leave the house with their children.
“She told us ‘You and dad really did wrong,”‘ Janet Bustillos said.
On Saturday, Victoria will be reunited with the firefighters who helped her family at a special recognition ceremony at Thornton Fire Station 5, 14051 Colorado Blvd. at 1 p.m.
Many of those same firefighters were also at Victoria’s school giving the fire lessons a week before the blaze.
She recognized them as they entered her home today.
“They gave me this rabbit,” Victoria said. “That made me feel a lot happier.”
Staff writer Monte Whaley can be reached at 720-929-0907 or at mwhaley@denverpost.com.
