From left are Firefighter Fil Santos, bride Dannie Skog, groom James Miller, Fire Chief David Hurlbut, and firefighters Erin Cullinane and Brandon Hamilton after the wedding ceremony. Submitted photo

STERLING — Sept. 10 dawned bright and sunny, the perfect day for town resident Maureen Lundin and her husband to host her nephew’s wedding in their back yard.

“The yard was perfect, the weather was perfect, the groom was so handsome and the bride was just gorgeous,” she posted on social media the following day.

But as bride Dannie Skog was making her way toward the aisle, to head toward her now husband James Miller, something started going amiss.

“The fire alarm sounded in the house as the bride was literally walking out the front door with the wedding party,” Lundin recalled.

It turns out there was a small fire in one of the bedrooms. The fire was caused by a rechargeable battery pack for a remote-controlled car, and the house instantly filled with smoke.

“I got up and ran to the house to turn off the alarm, without even thinking that it was a fire,” Lundin said. “As soon as I entered the house, I could smell smoke. I ran through the house searching for the source of the smoke, and as soon as I opened my son’s bedroom door, the heavy smoke rolled out of the room and filled the entire upstairs of the house.”

She could see that the smoke was coming from the battery for the remote-control car, which was hooked up to a charger on the floor near the door.

“During the time it took to grab a fire extinguisher, the smoke became so thick I could no longer see the battery on the floor,” Lundin said. “I sprayed the fire extinguisher on the area where the battery was located, but the smoke continued. Despite the disruption I knew it would cause, I called the Sterling Fire Department.”

As the ceremony went on outside, the wedding party and three dozen guests could hear the fire engines and sirens getting closer to the house.

“I was so relieved when the chief was the first one to arrive at the house, followed by the fire engines,” Lundin said of Fire Chief David Hurlbut. “We are so grateful and so very thankful for the fast response from the Sterling Fire Department. They are an amazing group of dedicated people. We’ll always remember how close this came to being a very serious fire that could have destroyed the entire house.”

Firefighters Fil Santos and Erin Cullinane were among those who helped get everything under control that day.

Lundin said the bride and groom “took it all in stride” and continued with the ceremony. At its conclusion, when they kissed, she said a Sterling police officer “who responded to the scene commented that the wedding must be over” and that the bride and groom immediately asked SFD if they could have a photo “with the firefighters and a fire truck.”

Originally from Holden, Lundin and her husband have lived in Sterling since 2016 with their two boys, now 24 and 20. She said her nephew and his then fiancée often visited their house and would comment “on the beautiful setting of the house with the surrounding woods and apple trees.”

“They decided on having an outside wedding, and asked us if they could have the wedding at our house in the yard,” Lundin said. “We immediately agreed.”

Miller remembers standing at the alter waiting for Skog to emerge from the house when he “saw some commotion on the front lawn.”

“(I) didn’t know exactly what was happening until the Reverend announced that there was a fire in the house and we might be delayed, but we would continue,” he said. “I was horrified during the start of the ceremony because there was smoke coming out of the house, so it was a relief to see the SFD arrive. And in a few minutes, I could see that all was well.”

Miller said they will “never forget this day, for not just the wedding but the fire as well,” and that the “rest of the day went fabulous.”

“There were no more surprises, and the reception was wonderful,” he said, adding that he and his new bridge went to Mystic, Connecticut, for a brief honeymoon.

Lundin praised the SFD in her social media post and said they wanted to give “a huge thank you to the fire department who made sure the fire was out and vented the smoke out of the house. We are so fortunate to have these amazing firefighters in our town. A memorable day had by all!”

Miller echoed her sentiments, saying he and Danni his bride will forever be thankful to the SFD and their quick actions.

“We are so grateful that there were no injuries, the fire was contained, and in the end, it was a beautiful day.”

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