On my wedding day, when the fire started from the white floral wall in the reception hall, I was trapped in the backstage dressing room. My husband, fire captain Preston Pierce, chose to carry out his childhood friend first. He looked back at me for a split second through the smoke, held her tightly in his arms, and told his arriving squad members to send her out because she had asthma. He said I knew CPR — I could save myself. My hand blistered against the burning doorknob. But I didn’t cry. I finally understood that marrying a fire captain didn’t mean he would definitely save me. And what I found out afterward made me realize the fire wasn’t the worst thing that happened that day.
On my wedding day, when the fire started from the white floral wall in the reception hall, I was trapped in the backstage dressing room. My husband, fire captain Preston Pierce, chose to carry out his childhood friend first. He looked back at me for a split second through the smoke, held her tightly in…
