Charlie Crawford was in his back yard playing a game of cards Wednesday night when a family member noticed flames coming from the home across the street. By the time Crawford made it to his front yard, he saw flames spewing from the roof of the home in the 1000 block of East 25th Street. He said he didn't think twice, when he decided to run inside the home. "After I found out the kids weren't in there, the heat kind of brought me back up out of there cause the smoke and stuff," he said.

Everyone made it out of the home safely, although two people were taken to St. Joseph Regional Medical Center suffering from heat exhaustion and smoke inhalation.

Crawford says he woke up Thursday morning coughing from smoke he inhaled the night before, but would take the risk again if needed. His concern for the family's safety is shared throughout the neighborhood.

"What was going on in my mind mainly was the kids cause I've known them for over a year," says Richard Brown. Brown lives next door to the damaged home and can see the charred remains of the children's toys from his back yard.

Thursday morning he was unaware the fire was intentionally set, but describes what's left of the house as a "big tragedy." Brown spent Friday morning washing ash off his truck with a water hose. He says despite the cause of the fire, he's thankful the children were not hurt. "Thank God the little kids are okay. You can replace the house but you can't replace the kids," says Brown.