A group of friends returning from an out-of-town birthday celebration noticed a house on fire on Pine Street and were able to wake up the residents inside. [Photo by Susan DeVilder]

Early Sunday morning on Aug. 27, Amber Haynes, her brother and a group of her friends were returning from the Quad Cities after celebrating one of their birthdays. It was shortly after 3 a.m., she said.

They had just dropped off a friend at home and were headed south down Elliot Street past the green space when one of her friends, and her brother, Chester Kemerling, noticed what appeared to be a bonfire out of the right side of their vehicle. After closer inspection, the group noticed it was no bonfire, but a structure fire.

Amber said they could see the flames through the parking lot of the old hospital site. They quickly turned their car towards Pine Street and headed towards the flames. Once at the house, they leapt from the car.

“It was an adrenaline rush. I have never gotten out of a car so fast in my life,” Amber said.

The group began to beat on the front door of the home. Her brother, Chester, called 9-1-1 and several of them, including Amber, began to yell at the homeowners to wake up, warning the residents inside that their house was on fire.

Within minutes, the Kewanee Police Department arrived on the scene, quickly followed by the Kewanee Fire Department.

Hearing the groups’ calls and warnings, the homeowners woke up and came to the door. The couple and their dog were able to get out safely.

“We talked to them,” Amber said. “They said they were so grateful to us.”

For three hours, the firefighters worked to put out the flames, which caused major damage to the backside of the home. The cause is still listed as undetermined, but an electrical fire is suspected to be the culprit.

Later Amber and her friends, that included her brother, Kristina Hammond, Dustin and Sarah Murphy and Teresa Dunn, reflected on the circumstances that put them exactly in the right place at the right time.

“It was unbelievable. We were all in shock and awe,” she said. “We were there at the perfect time and we just saved these people’s lives.”

On Tuesday, the homeowners, who wanted to remain anonymous, were at their house in the 500 block of Pine Street. The husband and wife were sizing up the fire damage to their home. They are grateful to the group and see them as their guardian angels who were placed in their path that morning.

“We wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for them,” said the woman, adding that firefighters said they had only a minute or two left to get out of the house.