HAWKINSVILLE, Ga. — The Central Georgia community is pitching in to help a family who lost their home in a fire.
It happened early Monday just after midnight in Hawkinsville.
The Warner family was quick to escape the flames.
The house was severely damaged in the fire, but friends, family and the community are stepping in to help.
Allyson McDonald has been best friends with Morgan Warner for the past 15 years.
When she got the call that her friend's house burned down in the middle of the night, she said she was shocked.
"Monday I woke up to the text from Morgan saying that their house had burned down and they lost four of their dogs," McDonald said. "So I knew I had to jump on and do something."
Among the dogs lost were family pets Gypsy, Dooly, Ticky and Tacoma.
Warner also has two kids, 10-year-old Jace and five-year-old Ramsey, who narrowly escaped the flames.
Warner said if they were 30 seconds too late, they could have burned along with the house.
"It's hard because I want to do more but there's only so much I can do," McDonald said. "If I could just build them a house, I would. But I can't, so all I can do for now is just support them. It's just been a huge outpouring of love for their family, and that's just really good to see."
A Facebook group called Southern Santas of Houston County posted about the fire, spreading the word to help the Warners get back on their feet.
Shane Shiftlet is the founder of Southern Santas of Houston County and says this was an all-hands-on-deck situation.
"I was out of town when I got the phone call and I'm like, 'Hey let's jump on this right away,'" Shiftlet said.
With the string of recent fires, Shiftlet said he feels for the families impacted.
He says they were able to get the word out through social media, and he is happy to be a resource to the community.
"We're 100% volunteers," Shiftlet said. "We're (volunteer) firefighters and we do this not only while at work or vacation but when we're off, we are here for the families. Anytime you have a problem with a fire or trauma incident, we are here for you."
The family is accepting donations and clothes that fit 10-year-old Jace and 5-year-old Ramsey as well as other men's and women's clothing. You can find more about the sizes here.
The drop-off location is 216 Spring Chase Circle in Kathleen, Georgia.
So far, they've raised over $10,000 to help the family get back on their feet.