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House burned, laid off, Cherry Creek family asking WNY for help

Posted at 11:12 PM, Nov 01, 2018
and last updated 2018-11-01 23:20:56-04

October was the worst month for one Cherry Creek family. Last week, Debbie Banas was home schooling her four youngest children.

“I said, ‘Chad, I smell smoke and he went looking.” Said Debbie.

“We ran upstairs and there was smoke coming up from the back attic,” added Chad Banas.

The house they were renting to own, and almost everything in it, was destroyed by the fire.

“That's all got to be tore down. This all has to be tore down. The second story, it's just, it's just all gone,” added Chad.

Everyone is safe, even the pets. But, now the four girls are living with Chad's parents. Chad and Debbie are living in a trailer in the driveway a friend lent them.

Their rough patch was compounded by the fact that Chad just lost his job.

“I was working at Tonawanda Coke as an electrical supervisor,” said Chad. He’s still waiting for his last pay check. He was let go when the plant closed, just one week before the fire.

“In one month, I lost my job and my house and most of my belongings,” said Chad.

The Banas’ are getting help with some bare necessities, especially from some good friends. But, they're hoping Western New York could give them a hand to find a new home and bring their family back together. 

Chad Banas' brother set up a GoFundMe page to help get them get a new home. 

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