4-year-old Florida girl hailed as a hero for saving her family from their burning home

Mesha Farland is only 4 but she has discovered something special about herself.

“I love being a hero,” she told WJXT News4Jax after she was credited by her family and firefighters with saving her loved ones from their burning home in Jacksonville on Aug. 30.

According to news reports, Mesha saw the fire break out in the afternoon while she was playing with her baby brother. “I looked back and saw flames. There was a bunch of smoke everywhere,” she told News4Jax.

She ran right away to tell her mom, Amri Payne, who saw fire engulfing the children’s room’s walls. Payne grabbed her 2-year-old son, Sage, and helped two other adults flee the home, Babble reported.

The Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department is still investigating the cause but all that remained in the kids’ room were coils from a charred bunk bed, along with ashes. Much of the home in the Paxon neighborhood is a mess and the Red Cross is providing temporary shelter.

“There was a bunch of smoke everywhere, right mom?” Mesha said, with a smile, as a video crew from Inside Edition filmed the family’s story and posted a video.

Three adults and the two children escaped injury thanks to Mesha’s quick thinking.

“She a hero,” Payne told News4Jax. “I’m proud of her.”

This story was originally published September 6, 2018 at 1:55 PM.