Route 114 Detour: GPS Error Leads Driver to Georgia House Fire
Casey Sparks’ navigation system redirected him to a residential blaze, allowing him to rescue a family of 14 before the structure collapsed.
By Bianca Herrera ·
A 37-year-old welding equipment repairman saved a family of 14 from a house fire in northwest Georgia after his GPS routed him down an unfamiliar highway. Casey Sparks arrived at the scene on Oct. 17 after his navigation system repeatedly directed him onto State Route 114 in Dalton.
Sparks was driving home to Concord, Alabama, from a softball game when he noticed a glow from the hilltop. He described the light as resembling a bonfire. Upon closer inspection, he saw a teenage boy attempting to extinguish flames with a garden hose. Sparks determined the fire had consumed the front of the residence, making hose efforts ineffective.
Before entering the structure, Sparks instructed his 13-year-old son to call 911. He then rushed inside to wake the occupants. Lyerly Fire Chief Tim Deberry stated that the family likely survived because Sparks acted within a five-minute window. Deberry noted that additional time inside the burning building would have likely resulted in fatalities.
The household consists of James and Larita Burke, their 11 adopted children, and one grandchild. Sparks reported finding a young girl in a hospital bed inside the home. He carried her out through a secondary exit after the primary door was blocked by flames, handing her to a neighbor over a fence before returning inside to assist the others.
James Burke, 58, was asleep in a recliner when a stranger woke him by yelling that the house was on fire. Burke expressed gratitude for the detour. He noted that Sparks had never traveled that specific path before and recognized the unusual routing as a signal to investigate the fire.
Sparks said he remained focused on the rescue without feeling fear, relying on adrenaline. He attributed his presence on the road to a divine hand. He joked that he initially viewed the reroute as a delay that added three hours to his drive.
Firefighters were dispatched to 28 Rowlls Road at 11:58 p.m. on Oct. 17. They found the structure completely engulfed in flames. All 14 members of the Burke family escaped safely.
