Family displaced from fire in Jamestown say city employee is a 'hero'

Nov. 25—JAMESTOWN — Family members who were displaced by a fire on Oct. 27 say that a city of Jamestown worker is their hero after he woke them up and helped get their kids out of a burning house.

"He's our guardian angel," said Ashley Syverson, one of five people displaced by a fire at her residence in Jamestown along with Ryan Cuypers and three children.

Ben Biloff, an employee with the city of Jamestown Sanitation and Solid Waste Department, woke the family up and helped get them out of their home. For his efforts, he was honored with the Citizens Lifesaving Award from the city of Jamestown on Tuesday, Nov. 21, at City Hall.

"If it wouldn't have been our whole family, I know it would have been a couple (lives lost)," Syverson said. "You can't put a price on a life. Everything else is just material."

Mayor Dwaine Heinrich said people often wonder how they will react if they are ever in a difficult situation like Biloff. Biloff and many other people now know how he would react when put in a difficult situation, he said.

Fire Chief Jim Reuther said if it wasn't for Biloff's actions, there could have been a much different outcome for the family.

The Jamestown Fire Department responded to 405 7th Ave. SE shortly before 3 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 27. When firefighters arrived, the blaze had fully involved the garage and had spread into the house.

Reuther said the house was a total loss. He said the cause of the fire is undetermined and started at the garage located in the backyard.

Biloff woke up early on the morning of Friday, Oct. 27, when it was snowing because he wanted to start working before there were more vehicles on the streets. On Friday mornings, he said he usually starts his work at the Stutsman County Law Enforcement Center but wanted to go toward the northeast area first.

When he was driving on 7th Avenue Southeast, Biloff noticed an orange glow.

"I got up there, I saw the flames in the house and the first thing I noticed was there were no emergency vehicles, nobody outside, which is usually a common thing for fires," he said.

Biloff called 911, gave the Stutsman County Communications Center the address and told a dispatcher he was going to get the people out of the house.

"I hung up on her and started banging on the door and he (Cuypers) reacted almost immediately," he said.

Cuypers said he didn't know what was going on when he heard someone pounding on the door. He said everyone in the household was sound asleep before he answered the door.

"It was scary. We didn't know whether somebody died or if we were getting broken into," Syverson said. "Then he (Biloff) said, 'You guys have to get up. Your house is on fire.'"

Everyone was able to get out along with the family's two cats. Cuypers said the family went back to the house after the scene had been cleared and found their third cat.

"The family acted really quick," Biloff said. "Everybody got up and was pretty calm for the most part."

Cuypers said the family has received "unbelievable amounts" of support.

"Jamestown has been amazing," Syverson said. "His (Cuypers) community down in the Dickey, Adrian area, amazing."

Cuypers said the family has received everything it needed, including clothing and three vehicles.

"We lost everything," he said.

He said the family stayed in a hotel for eight days before moving into a rental house.

A benefit has been planned for 5 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 9, at The Rabbit Hole, 5631 County Road 63, in Adrian, North Dakota. There will be appetizers available for a freewill donation along with gun boards, 50/50 raffles, silent auctions and a meat raffle.

To donate silent auction items, contact Amanda Brandt at (701) 710-1535, Kristen Hanson, (701) 320-8449, or Brittany Cuypers at (701) 840-5884.