Kingsley, MI – Matt Schelich can’t recall what raced through his mind as he rushed into a friend’s home to find a family unconscious, robbed of air by a faulty furnace.
“I don’t know what I thought, I don’t even know if I breathed,” said Schelich, who teaches at Kingsley High School. “The adrenaline just kicks in and we started getting people out of the house.”
Schelich and Matt Nausadis, Kingsley’s high school principal, pulled Bruce and Aerin Graves, their two young sons and two dogs from their home Monday morning. Their actions saved the lives of a friend and co-worker whose family fell victim to carbon monoxide poisoning.
Bruce and Aerin Graves were flown to Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids, where both were admitted in critical condition. Their conditions were upgraded to fair on Tuesday.
Their children, Owen, 6, and Ely, 3, were discharged from Munson Medical Center Tuesday following treatment for carbon monoxide poisoning.
Intuition and a willingness to act saved four lives. Schelich and Nausadis said Monday morning’s events alerted them that something wasn’t quite right.