9-year-old saves 5 siblings from fire
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HILLIARD, Fla. — Three generations of a family that lost all their possessions in a house fire Monday night are praising their 9-year-old girl for rescuing five younger family members.
Shakiah Mason is credited with saving four toddlers and a 4-month-old baby from the fire that destroyed the family's Hilliard home.
"I grabbed the baby and I grabbed the other kids and I got them out the house so Momma and them could get the fire out," Shakiah said. "The important part was getting my brother and my sisters and cousin out."
Shakiah's mother and grandmother did try to put out the fire, but when they realized it was too big, they ran to get the kids and found they were already outside.
"All I could think about was that family who lost five kids in a fire last week and I thought, 'Oh my God, no,'" Shakerra Mason-Rollo said.
The family lost everything they owned -- including the childrens' Christmas presents they had just brought home from layaway, but Mason-Rollo said she is so grateful for what was spared.
"I am so blessed. She is my hero," Mason-Rollo said. "I just want to thank my daughter, because if it wasn't for her, it could have been worse."
Shakiah Rollo, right, led her five siblings out of their home when it caught fire.