Colorado Springs newlyweds lose everything in apartment fire
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Exactly two months after one of the best days of their lives, Colorado Springs newlyweds are facing their worst-case scenario after a fire destroyed everything they owned.
Malachi and Olivia Carlson were two of the victims of the Apex Apartments fire in Colorado Springs Friday night.
Lightning struck the roof of their building, which quickly ignited a fire that ripped through units.
Olivia and Malachi say despite fire alarms not going off, screams began filling the hallways which was their first indication that something was wrong.
“We were kind of like, what the heck is going on? I was still in bed at this point and Malachi ran over to open up the door," said Olivia Carlson. "That's when we smelled the smoke and heard the people yelling 'fire!' At that point, it was just kind of like, 'Okay, we have to go, we have to get out.”
In the midst of the chaos, the couple only grabbed things they immediately spotted, like their cat, wallets, and passports.
“In our mind, we were going back up that night,” said Olivia.
Material things, like thousands of dollars worth of wedding gifts, were destroyed. Sentimental items like letters from Olivia’s late father were left behind.
"We just didn't know how long we had because the letters were up on the top shelf of my closet," said Olivia.
Miraculously though, those precious notes survived.
"We got to write down a couple of things that night, that if the firefighters were able to go up into our apartment, they could grab," said Olivia. "The letters were at the top of my list, and they were actually able to retrieve those letters -- in perfect condition. I mean, they smell like smoke, but they're not burnt.”
It's silver linings like that, and support from their loved ones that the couple says is helping them get through the hardest situation they've faced yet.
"We never expected anything like this to happen in the first couple of months of marriage," said Malachi. "It's making a stronger. I've never felt closer to her. We're excited to see what transpires, and are trying to turn this mess into something great.”
While the Carlsons did have renter's insurance, they say they are underinsured and won’t have enough money to recover everything they lost from the fire.
If you'd like to donate to their GoFundMe, click here.
