When the fire broke out, Kenneth Zerr refused to leave his disabled wife. He died with her as they awaited the arrival of firefighters.
The tragic event occurred on Thursday, November 10, in Missouri (United States). An elderly couple from New Melle, Kenneth and Phyllis Zerr, died in a fire at their home.
The local fire chief, Dan Casey, told CBS News that the incident was a kind of "tragic love story." Kenneth, 84, could have exited the burning building and safely awaited the firefighters, but he chose to stay with his immobilized wife.
Phyllis Zerr, his wife, used a wheelchair. When the fire started, she was in the bathroom adjacent to the bedroom. Unfortunately, she fell from her chair, and her husband was unable to lift her. Kenneth called the fire department, opened the front door, and returned to his wife's side.
"The officer tried to convince my father to leave the house, but he replied, 'I will not leave my wife,' and stayed with her until the end," his son, Andy Zerr, told KSDK-TV.
Attempts to get the woman, also 84, back into her wheelchair and leave the house failed when the bedroom floor collapsed, cutting off the couple's escape route. Kenneth placed wet towels under the bathroom door, hoping they would stop the smoke, allowing them to wait for help to arrive.
Upon arrival, firefighters found thick clouds of black smoke inside. Rescue operations were then hampered by the floor collapse.
After a long search, when they finally found the elderly couple, they had already succumbed to smoke inhalation. "This is a hard blow for our small community. All crews on scene did everything they could to save them," reads a post on the New Melle Fire Protection District's Facebook profile.
"They loved being together. They loved life."
The couple had celebrated their 63rd wedding anniversary in September. They were devout Catholics and had worked for years at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in New Melle. They had lived for 18 years in the house where the fire occurred.
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They had three children, six grandchildren, and about a dozen great-grandchildren, and they hosted large Christmas celebrations with their extended family. "They loved to travel, they loved being together. They loved life," said their son Andy.
"My father chose to stay with her rather than save his own life," he added. "They always lived for each other. I wish my marriage could be like theirs."
This article was originally published in Italian by Aleteia (Article Link).