Heroic 2-Year-Old's Timely Warning Saves Family Of 7 From House Fire

A Texas toddler is being lauded for his timely warning about a house fire that saved his entire family from a grim death.

A fire broke out in the Alford home around 4:30 a.m. on Jan. 15. The toddler's parents, Nathan Dahl and Kayla Dahl, were recovering from COVID-19 at the time and had lost their sense of taste and smell, a common side effect of the infection. While the couple did not smell the smoke wafting through their house, the smoke detectors, too, failed to go off.

The consequences of the fire could have been tragic for the couple and their five children. But, 2-year-old Brandon Dahl managed to save the day by running into his parents' room and waking them up.

"He tapped me on my feet in bed and was coughing and saying, 'Mama, hot. Mama, hot,'" the toddler’s mother, Kayla Dahl said to Good Morning America. When Kayla Dahl looked toward her doorway, all she saw was flames.

By the time Kayla Dahl woke up her husband, the flames were six-foot high. "I was like, 'Oh my God,'" Nathan Dahl told WFAA. "My heart just dropped. In my head, I already knew this house was gone. We had to get out."

Nathan Dahl, who has been a volunteer firefighter for the Alvord Fire Department, said he had previously run practice drills with his children on what to do in case of a fire. He told them not to worry about grabbing anything and to quickly make their way out of the house.

The couple had barely made it out of the door with their children when the blazing inferno engulfed their home. The fire destroyed the entire structure of the Dahl home.

"Everything is gone. We lost my car. Everything inside the house. Brandon saved us. He was wrapped in God's arms to help protect him and to make sure that our entire family was able to get out," Kayla Dahl told Good Morning America.

The fire is thought to have started in the living room where a sick Brandon Dahl was sleeping at the time.

"He saved our entire family," Kayla Dahl said to WFAA. "He's our little mini hero."

The family did not sustain any burn injuries or damage due to smoke inhalation.