Lifestyle

Heroic Boy Saves 40 Lives in Virginia Bed and Breakfast Fire

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Tony Maples Photography

 

Ten-year-old Ashton Dunford was still awake on a Saturday night when he smelled paper burning. The bed and breakfast next to his house was on fire, so he did something.

A historic landmark in Lexington, Virginia, the Good Place Farms Bed and Breakfast has been a staple in the state. From a wedding venue to a quiet retreat, this hidden gem is a beautiful hideout in the middle of Virginia, until a fire destroyed it.

Ashton Dunford, a boy who lived next door, smelled burning paper one night and walked over to see the bed and breakfast. As soon as he saw it was on fire, he started yelling. He told WSLS 10 that “a lot of smoke was upstairs and we started seeing flames.”

The guests awoke and began to evacuate. No one was injured in the fire, but precious belongings were lost forever, like owner Justin Peery’s entire photography collection full of “all of my memories, all of my photography, all of my backup drives, the magazines of the models [he] represented.”

Anywhere from 50 to 75 firefighters responded to the call and began to battle the fire, which took about an hour to finally quell in the middle of the night. It’s unknown whether the Good Place Farms Bed and Breakfast will rebuild, but Ashton Dunford is a real hero for following his instinct.