Essex Senior Center to Help Victims of House Fire

The is accepting donations to assist a local family that lost everything in .

David and Mary Falkner's home was destroyed in the one-alarm blaze early Thursday. The Falkners, along with grandsons Charley and Collin Knisley, all escaped the home safely.

Firefighters credit Charley, 15, for quickly alerting his relatives to the fire and helping them escape. The Kenwood freshman even caught Collin, 10, as he jumped from a second-story window.

“Had the young man not taken the actions he had this morning, it would have been very difficult to get people out of the home because it was completely engulfed in flames by the time firefighters arrived on the scene," Baltimore County Fire Department spokesman Elise Amacost said last week.

Workers at the Essex Senior Center, which is less than a block from the Falkners' home, said those who wish to help can write a check to the center and add a notation that it is for the family. The center is also accepting cash and gift cards as the family needs to replace all of its belongings. The Essex Senior Center is at 600 Dorsey Avenue, Essex, MD 21221.

The fire is under investigation, Armacost said.

Listen to Charley Knisley III recall what happened when fire engulfed his grandparents' home.