Multiple fire companies converged on Bob Denekas' home after he narrowly escaped with his life.

KAMRAR — The CPAP machine at Ron Denekas’ bedside is designed to keep him breathing peacefully throughout the night. The machines that use mild air pressure to alleviate such conditions as sleep apnea have become commonplace to help millions get a good night’s sleep. When the electricity in his farm home northeast of Kamrar went out early Thursday morning, and his CPAP machine stopped working, Denekas woke up in shock as to what was going on around him

It was hotter than all get out and it was pitch dark, no electricity,” Denekas recalled. “I took my CPAP mask off, and it was all smoke. I thought, ‘What on earth?’ I looked down the hallway, and there was a big fire in the front of the house. It was hotter than blazes and very smoky.”

Had the CPAP machine not stopped working, he’s not sure when or if he would have woken up. Grabbing only his cell phone, Denekas made it about seven feet from the bedroom to the door of his attached garage wearing nothing but sleepwear.

“You get so excited,” in such a situation, Denekas explained. He has lived in this home since he built it new in 1992, but in the smoke and rush of the evening, he struggled to open the door, attempting to open it the wrong way until he told himself to “calm down.”

“I turned the doorknob, it’s kind of hot, and I push on it twice,” Denekas said. “It wouldn’t open. I thought, ‘Oh my goodness, I’m going to burn up.’ And then I said to myself, ‘calm down,’ the door goes in, and that’s how it opens.”

Once in the garage, Denekas was able to use manual release for the garage door and back his pickup safely out of the garage. He had no shoes on his feet and the warmest garment on his body was just a flannel shirt. Adrenaline seemed to keep him warm.

“I went back to the front door, in the snow, no shoes, and I’m not cold,” he recalled. “I opened the door and it was just fire inside, so I shut the door.”

He was hoping that his pets might escape, but there was nothing he could do,

“I had two kitty cats in there, and I was hoping they would get out, but I don’t think they made it. It was dark, and I could barely breathe.”

Thankfully for Denekas, the garage was the last part of the home to ignite.

“When I got to the garage, I could breathe a lot easier,” Denekas recalled. “It singed my hair, there was black soot coming out of my nose. I think I was breathing a lot of smoke … Once I backed out of the garage, it didn’t take long. In about 10 minutes, the flames were shooting all through the garage.”

Once out of the home, he immediately called 911 and then drove to his son’s home, about a mile away, hoping to get some warm clothes. With adrenaline still pumping, he tried for only a short time and was unable to wake anyone at the residence, and was soon on his way back to his burning home at 2809 260th Street, between Kamrar and Blairsburg.

Long-time Blairsburg volunteer firefighter Dave Pruismann was first on the scene and actually made it there before Denekas returned from his son’s home.

“Dave Pruismann lives about a mile to the east of me,” Denekas said. “He was there when I got back, and he said, ‘Am I glad to see you.’ He thought I could have still been in the house.”

While Pruismann had found the tracks of the pickup leaving the garage, he was doing his due diligence as a firefighter to account for anyone who might possibly be in the home. It was a true relief when Denekas arrived back at the scene. Pruismann quickly called his wife, Linda Pruismann, to bring over some warmer clothes for Denekas.

Before the night was over, five area volunteer fire departments would work together to battle the blaze. Responding agencies included fire departments from Blairsburg, Kamrar, Williams, Jewell and Ellsworth, as well as the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Department. Jewell also dispatched its rescue crew to remain on scene in the event of injuries, thankfully there were none to report between the resident or those battling the blaze.

The biggest challenge in any rural fire is always water supply. On this frigid February night, freezing lines and hoses didn’t help, but the fire had spread so rapidly that little could be done.

“By the time we got there, about 1:30 a.m., it was fully engulfed,” said Blairsburg Fire Chief Rod Harris. “We were going to need water to control it. We hauled with our Blairsburg tanker truck two loads of water and then we froze up. Other departments were also having issues freezing up.”

The quick response time was pretty incredible, especially for volunteers to hop out of their own warm beds, head to their local fire station, don their protective gear, and then speed down gravel roads in the night.

“Some of the departments brought their pumper trucks, and we let them go earlier because you don’t want those freezing up,” Harris explained. “It’s easier to break something.”

The home was deemed a total loss in the fire.

“The roof fell into the first floor of the house when we got there,” Harris said. “That was the main part of the house, and then it fell into the basement.”

It’s believed that the fire may have started in the basement. About the only items in the basement were a furnace and water heater. He speculates that it was likely a furnace fire, or possibly electrical.

The majority of firefighters were on scene until about 5 or 5:30 a.m. A smaller group stayed until about noon to make sure the blaze didn’t reignite.

“We stayed putting down spot fires,” Harris said. “For safety, I didn’t want to put anyone in the house.”

Charred debris that had fallen into the basement occasionally would throw up new flames, which the volunteers quickly put down again.

Denekas is beyond grateful and impressed by the volunteers who came and fought a fire in such frigid conditions. All of the fire chiefs, and many of the firefighters, he had long known as friends.

“These are my friends,” Denekas said. “I know about all of them. So many people have been so good. The church was out right away.”

While he escaped unharmed, Denekas is saddened by the loss of his pets.

“I almost feel sadder that I lost my kitty cats than my possessions,” he said. “You can get new possessions, and you can get a new cat, too. But at least I’m still alive.”

Pet owners will understand that even a new pet doesn’t replace a long-time friend.

“I had hoped they would get out, but it was dark,” he said. “I couldn’t see anything. I couldn’t go back in.”

Denekas is quickly learning the value of doing business locally as he works to rebuild his life. On Thursday, just hours after the fire, he needed to get just the basics of everyday living.

“I went into Webster City Federal (WCF) and they were able to get me a debit card right away. I went to the courthouse, and I was able to get a new driver’s license. I didn’t have any identification, but everybody made it work. I went to Bomgaars and got some shirts and pants and socks.”

He also needed new glasses and medication. His daughter got on the phone, got his medical prescriptions refilled, and found a place that could make new glasses right away.

“I went to Vision for Less in Ames,” he said. “I had a 2 o’clock appointment and I walked out of there at 3:30 with new glasses.”

For now, Denekas is staying with his son, Brian Denekas.

“They have a nice living area in the basement,” Denekas said. “It’s like a mansion. I might not want to leave.”

But he also expects to spend some time with his daughter, Christy Wahl, who lives in Ames. Many friends and neighbors have also offered temporary living quarters, a testament to small-town friendliness.

While he may have lost everything, Denekas is clinging to the sense of humor for which his friends and neighbors have long known him.

“Everybody asks me, ‘Have you lived there all your life?’ I say, ‘Not yet.’

“It’s like Gone with the Wind when they burned Tara,” Denekas said. “I shall return.”