A Birch Grove Road family has been displaced after a fire hit their house last week.

Don Ferguson woke up to a fire burning in his porch at around 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 11, according to his daughter, Laura Ferguson.

Laura Ferguson, 22, said that what wasn’t damaged by the fire at their home at 650 Birch Grove Road was affected by smoke and water damage.

“We’re staying wherever we can, really,” Laura Ferguson said Monday. “We have to pretty much move about and find a different residence as soon as we can.”

The Fergusons are staying on a family member’s property temporarily, she said. Don is  hospitalized due to a separate medical condition, which has been made worse due to the stress of losing his home.

Laura, her brother Tim, sister Katy and a 3-year-old nephew all lived at the residence with her parents, Don and Maggie.

A GoFundMe account has been set up called “Fund the Fergusons.” GoFundMe is an online, nonprofit fundraising organization that allows people to donate any amount, anonymously or by name.

The Fergusons also have received help from the Red Cross and Walmart.

Still, the family is in need. Laura, who held two jobs, has lost both of them. One was due to the business cutting down on staff and the other job was a seasonal position.

According to the GoFundMe site, Don needs emergency surgery and the family doesn’t have medical insurance. There was no homeowner’s insurance on the house.

The fire is believed to have been caused by a cigarette that ignited underneath the front porch and a recliner on the porch. Don awoke to the crackling of flames and tried to put the fire out himself, but it was already burning too hot.

“Some of the frame is still standing, but there’s too much smoke and water damage,” Laura said. “The smoke is really toxic, so it has pretty much contaminated everything. Even if the clothes and stuff didn’t get burned, it’s full of smoke and mold.

“The house is pretty much just gone.”

Visit the Fergusons’ GoFundMe page at www.gofundme.com/czerpk or visit GoFundMe.com and search for Fund the Fergusons.

Reporter Brittany Brevik can be reached by email at [email protected] or by calling (406) 758-4459.