"Solomon Little Owl can’t stop replaying the late-November night in his head.

He remembers the final quiet moments of an otherwise enjoyable Thanksgiving Day. Little Owl was settling in to flick on the 10 o’clock news.

Then everything flipped.

A day of family, fun and feasting suddenly gave way to flames, smoke and panic.

“My father in-law came up from the basement and said there was tons of smoke down there. He usually exaggerates stuff,” Little Owl said with a chuckle. “I went down there and there was tons of smoke.”

Something had gone wrong inside the fireplace. Little Owl had built a fire in the hearth earlier that day."

Get the Story:
Chris Casey: Man uprooted, but still upbeat in wake of fire (The Greeley Tribune 1/7)