A 15-year-old Stockbridge boy, fighting for his life in an Augusta burn center, is being hailed as a hero.
Michael Haney rescued his parents from their burning home at 192 Hwy 138 East in Stockbridge early Sunday morning before going back into the house to try to save his older sister. The siblings were trapped inside when Henry County fire officials arrived just before 6 a.m.
“If it weren’t for Michael, they’d (parents) be dead,” next-door neighbor Mary Davenport said Monday. “He’s the one that ran upstairs, woke them up and told them the house was on fire. He took them out and went back for his sister.”
Haney and his sister Karen Prichard were taken to Piedmont Henry Hospital where the 25-year-old Prichard, who was physically and mentally challenged, was pronounced dead. An autopsy will be performed to determine her cause of death.
The teenager was later airlifted to Joseph M. Still Burn Center in Augusta, where he is undergoing treatment in a hyperbaric chamber for severe smoke inhalation. He was in critical condition as of Monday, according to Henry County fire department officials, who rescued him from the house. His parents, Michael Haney and Sandy Cochran, are with him in Augusta. The cause of the fire is still under investigation although Henry County fire officials determined the fire started in the basement of the home. Michael’s bedroom was in the basement. Firefighters found him in the living room a few feet from the front door. His sister was found in the parents’ bedroom, according to Davenport.
Davenport and her husband, Joshua, were awakened Sunday morning around 5:30 by the elder Haney’s loud banging on their front door. The Davenports called the fire departmentand rushed next door with flashlights to try to help but were repelled by the smoke.
“I heard (Prichard) screaming and (her brother) Michael telling her to ‘come on’,” Mary Davenport recalled. After awhile, the screaming turned to silence, she said.
It is the second tragedy in less than a year for the family. A 17-year-old son, Devin, died in a drowning accident in Tennessee last year.
Monday, neighbors and friends stopped by the brick ranch as fire and insurance officials continued their investigation. They described the teenager as a polite, energetic and determined young man who loved being outdoors with his dog Dante and tinkering with motorscooters and bicycles. The teenager, who rakes yards to earn money, attends Patrick Henry High School and is considered the neighborhood handyman. Davenport said he was especially proud of a Galaxy cellphone he’d recently purchased.
Kimberly Maddox, a family friend who’d also stopped by the house Monday added, “When he wanted to do something. He’d find a way to do it.”
Tonya Moody, the mother of Michael Haney’s best friend, Billy, was among the friends and neighbors also talked about how much he loved his family. “He always talked good about his mom, dad and sister.”
About the Author
