Dilworth home fire

Hi! My name is Ariel McRorey and I’m from Dilworth, MN.

At approximately 7 am on August 17th, a fire started in the apartment unit that my family and I live in. The cause of the fire is still under investigation, so we aren’t sure what happened.

My mom and I had left for work 15 minutes prior and everything was fine and normal. My sister was still there asleep, along with her dog and her hamster. My sister, Skylar, had woken up because she felt an intense burning in her chest and was struggling to breathe, to see complete blackness from the smoke and luckily was able to get herself out. A while later, firefighters were able to get her dog and hamster out. Skylar and her pets were evaluated and everyone will be okay.

The reason we are asking for help is because my sister did have to bring her pets to the emergency vet clinic in Fargo, and those expenses are quite heavy but so necessary. Nova, her dog, had the worst smoke inhalation but was put on oxygen and is expected to be okay. She is also on antibiotics to help with a corneal laceration that happened at some point after the fire started. Smudge, her hamster, was in a room with the door closed, so he escaped with very little smoke inhalation and is doing okay.

Along with the vet bills, the damage to our home makes it unlivable and we are still looking for living arrangements. We have been given some help from both the Red Cross and Salvation Army, which we are so grateful for, but we still have no where to live and have no idea if any of our possessions are salvageable.

Any proceeds that we get from this GoFundMe will go directly to my mom to help with living expenses and vet bills for our beloved Smudge and Nova.

Thank you in advance for any help that you may be able and/or willing to provide.