Three days after a Sumner County home burned down, everything was gone, but Russ Matthews wasn't leaving.
"This is my home. This is where I want to be," Matthews said.
It was hours before sunrise Thursday morning when Matthews awoke to his wife's screams.
"I jumped up out of bed, come into the hallway, and when I turned the hallway light on I started seeing a little bit of smoke up around the ceiling," he explained.
His first thoughts were to save his family. All five of them managed to escape.
"We got everybody out through the garage," Matthews said.
They were out of the house, but helpless against the flames.
"The wind just picked up, and within three to four minutes I had flames shooting out the ceiling about 30 feet," Matthews said.
As they waited for help, they watched as the fire took their home.
"That was our life. I mean life just stood still," Matthews said. "It just seemed like everything was in slow motion, but it went so quick."
Everything they owned turned to ash. Their future plans shattered.
"We was supposed to have a big Easter dinner here tomorrow. Well, we'll still have an Easter dinner, but it won't be here," said Matthews.
He wasn't dwelling on what happened and has been living in an RV on the property.
"We'll clean up, we'll rebuild, we'll have another home right here," said Matthews.
Family and friends have set up gofundme accounts to help the family. You can visit those by clicking here and here.
