As a 911 dispatcher in the Boston suburb of Quincy, Massachusetts, Mike Bowes handles all kinds of emergencies, but he’d never handled anything like the house fire call he got at 10:45 PM on Monday night.  As it turns out, the house fire he was sending emergency crews to was his house, AND his parents were home at the time an explosion sent flames shooting through the kitchen window.  Mike was able to keep his cool under pressure and dispatch a fire crew to the residence, but guess who one of the first firefighters on the scene was?  Mike’s cousin, Tom Bowes.  Turns out the fire was a real family affair!

While Mike handled the calls from concerned friends and neighbors, Tom worked to save precious family heirlooms like pictures.  Everything in the house was lost, aside from what Tom was able to save, but the important thing is that Mike’s parents and neighbors were all okay.  Still, to answer a fire call about your own house has to be long odds in a city of 90,000 people!

Tags: Mike Bowes, Tom Bowes, Quincy, Massachusetts, 911 dispatcher handles own house fire, unusual news, odd events, coincidences

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