Family with COVID Almost Dies in House Fire, Can't Smell the Smoke

A Texas family suffering from COVID-19 nearly died in a house fire Sunday because they couldn't smell the smoke, authorities say. In fact, Waco firefighters say the Rivera family certainly would have perished in the blaze had it not been for 17-year-old Bianca Rivera. As the only member of the family who hasn't contracted the virus, she was able to smell smoke and wake up her family before the ultimate tragedy struck. "I started smelling burnt plastic," she says. "That's when I got more alert and I ran outside of my room. i couldn't even pass the hallway because it was filled with so much smoke. And I knew I had to wake everyone up." Although authorities are hailing Rivera as a hero, the teen says she's nothing of the sort. "I don't really count myself as a hero," she says. "I just did what anyone would else would do for their own family. I just wanted to get everyone out safe and alive."