Update: Mother talks about how she had to toss her 3-year-old to bystanders to escape fire

A man and his fiancée tossed their 3-year-old child down to bystanders to escape a fire at their home in Loris Thursday morning.

Two other people were hospitalized in the fire that started on Thomas Street off Highway 701, according to Loris Fire Chief Jerry Hardee.

The couple, Tarran “Star Lyn” Klemann and Trequann Lance, had to jump out of a second-story window in order to escape. They had initially tried to escape through the apartment door, but couldn’t, Klemann said Friday.

Klemann said she didn’t know if she and her daughter would be here if her fiancé hadn’t woken up when he did. She and her daughter were sleeping when the fire started.

“We are very sore and bruised up,” Klemann said in a Facebook message.

Both Klemann and her daughter suffered some minor injuries, such as bruises, scratches and minor burns. Lance received a few minor burns on his stomach.

Klemann added that she was especially grateful to the fire department and the other first responders who were at the scene.

The couple lost personal belongings as well as cellphones. They’ve set up a GoFundMe page as well as an Amazon Wishlist for recovering their belongings.

The family is staying with relatives temporarily.

Linda Vance, who works at Elite Home Care, set up a GoFundMe page for one of her employees, Randolph Brown, who was displaced in the fire.

Brown is a senior driver at the adult home care center in Loris.

Vance said that Brown finished driving clients to the day center before returning to his family, who had lost everything in the fire.

“He goes out of his way to help everyone around him,” Vance said.

That evening, members of the community in Loris gathered to help pull furniture out of the destroyed complex, according to Vance. It was very heartwarming, she said.

The fire destroyed two apartments and displaced four families, according to Hardee. It appeared to start in the area of a trash container outside. Most likely from a cigarette, Hardee said.

Two other apartments are unable to be occupied due to the fire and smoke damage.

The Loris Fire Department arrived at the scene around 8:30 a.m.

“I would like to thank Horry County for assisting us,” Hardee said. “We’re on automatic dispatch with them, but they helped us with the situation and Tabor City Fire Department.”

This story was originally published April 13, 2023 at 4:00 PM.