When Kevin Burns moved to California, he was excited for a new adventure. He couldn’t wait to embrace life in the Sunshine State. It would mean regularly hanging out on the beach, surfing the waves and making new friends and neighbours. He was looking forward to a fresh start. However, things would not end up going entirely to plan and he would soon learn that even the towns that seem perfect on the outside have their own secrets.
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Not long after settling into his new neighbourhood, Burns came across something a little strange. There was an older woman who owned a house across the street from him, but instead of living inside the house, she lived in her car! He couldn’t understand why she would do this when her house was right there. It wouldn’t be long before Burns would get to the bottom of this puzzle, but what he found out was shocking…
Suspicious Neighbour
When Kevin Burns first arrived at his house in California, he was convinced that the house across the street was abandoned. It wasn’t until about a year later, that he realised that this elderly woman was living in her car right in front of it. He had obviously not yet spoken to her, but decided that she probably wanted to be left alone.
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Burns could not help but wonder about this woman. He wanted an explanation for her behaviour. He spoke to some of his other neighbours about it who told him that this woman, named Ruth, owned the house she slept in front of, but she would never step foot inside it. Burns wasn’t at all satisfied with this explanation. He decided that something needed to be done. One day, he approached her to ask her if she needed anything at all. Little did he know that he would not only become her friend as a result, but also her hero.
Opening Up
One morning, after an unusually cold night, Burns headed over to Ruth’s car. She was awake and seemed more than happy to engage in conversation with him. This would be the start of a lovely friendship. From that day on, Burns would regularly stop by the car for a chat. He began to learn more about this strange woman.
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As they chatted, Ruth became more and more open about her life and told him about her daily routine. She awoke each morning, headed to the local gym and used their shower. As a result of her situation, she ate exclusively fast food. After dinner, she would fall asleep in the car in front of her house. Ruth did not explain why she had been sleeping in the car and Burns didn’t want to overstep the mark, but he knew that something clearly wasn’t right…
Examining The House
One morning, Burns took the decision to get a closer look at Ruth’s house. What he discovered shocked him. He found many broken windows, boards, and blinds and a lot of mould. It was as if the house had not been lived in for years, it was a total wreck. Burns wondered whether what Ruth needed was some help in restoring her home.
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The more closely he examined the house, the more he discovered and he soon came to the conclusion that this house had not been lived in for a very long time. He wondered whether perhaps wildlife had taken over the home. When Burns discovered the truth behind it all, it broke his heart…
Missing Item
It was a day like any other. Kevin Burns was on his way over to Ruth’s car to have their daily chat. However, when he arrived, he found his friend in tears. When Burns asked her what was wrong, Ruth couldn’t answer. She was frantically looking for something among the many plastic bags that she had in her car. Whatever it was she was looking for, the search seemed utterly futile.
Kevin Burns/Youtube
Ruth explained to Kevin that she had lost something that was very important to her. She told him that when she had first moved into the car, she had gathered up everything that was valuable to her and packed it all into plastic bags. She realised that she must have left this item inside the house, but she had no intention of ever stepping foot back inside.
Inside The House
Burns tried asking Ruth what it was that she had lost, but Ruth couldn’t seem to find the words to tell him. She seemed completely heartbroken. All she could manage was to say “in the house” over and over again, while she pointed at her neglected home.
Kevin Burns/Youtube
All of a sudden, Ruth had an idea. “Maybe you can go inside and get it!” she said. Despite still not knowing what it was he would actually be looking for, Burns agreed to this. Little did he know what he was about to discover…
Getting A Closer Look
After Burns agreed, Ruth was finally able to find the words to tell him that she was crying because she had lost a picture of her parents. She believed that the last time she had seen this photograph was inside the house in one of the bedrooms. Burns approached the house feeling confident that he would be able to find it. The task would actually turn out to be one of the most difficult in his life!
Kevin Burns/Youtube
As Kevin Burns approached the front door of the house, he started to understand why it was that Ruth had abandoned her home. There was a cracked window next to the front door so he could just about see inside and what he saw didn’t look at all good.
Total Disrepair
He couldn’t see much since there was a complete lack of light, but what he did get a glimpse of didn’t look good. The home seemed to be in complete disrepair and it looked as though animals might well have taken over. As he moved closer to the house, he started to smell something foul emanating from inside the house.
Kevin Burns/Youtube
He was finally close enough to the house to understand why Ruth was not able to live here anymore. The conditions were appalling. There was a huge hole in the roof and pieces of it were all over the floor of the house and in the yard. Kevin took one last breath of fresh air before reluctantly stepping inside the house.
Horrible Smell
When Kevin opened the front door of the house, a mountain of rubbish came pouring out onto the front lawn. There was so much of it that Kevin had to quickly jump out of the way. The smell that came with it was so awful that it made Kevin gag. At this point, he contemplated turning back, but he couldn’t let Ruth down.
Kevin Burns/Youtube
The home was completely uninhabitable. Everywhere he looked, he was confronted by piles and piles of rubbish. It covered the entire floor. Burns was struggling to breathe due to the stench and his eyes even started watering. The task of finding the photograph, that he thought would be easy, now seemed near on impossible.
Difficult Task
He had been in the house for less than five minutes but already, he had to run outside to prevent himself from throwing up. He walked back over to Ruth and told her that he would return to find the photograph after a quick breather. Kevin realised how huge a task he had on his hands. It would require gloves and a mask and he would need to take the day off work.
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At this point, most people would have given up and refused to go back inside, but not Kevin! He was someone who stuck to his promises. He also wanted to find out exactly what had happened for the house to be in this mess. He would soon learn the truth…
Trash Everywhere
Kitted out with gloves and a heavy-duty mask, Burns returned to the house to finish the task he had started. With the appropriate equipment, he would be able to take time over finding the photograph. Each room that Burns entered was worse than the last. The kitchen was filled with piles of trash, rotten food, and dirty dishes. He couldn’t see the floor for all of the rubbish.
Kevin Burns/Youtube
It was clear that Ruth had not stepped foot inside the house for months. Burns’ mission wasn’t going too well, he couldn’t see any photographs that were worth picking up. Where could Ruth have left it? When he reached the living room, he couldn’t believe his eyes…
It All Made Sense
The living room was the worst room in the house, no question. Everywhere Burns looked, there were piled up bags of trash, papers and other strange items. It made total sense now why Ruth lived in her car, it was a better option than her home! Looking around at the chaos, Kevin feared it would take him hours to find this photo of hers.
Kevin Burns/Youtube
Over three hours passed and he hadn’t even come close to finding it. During that time, he couldn’t help but wonder how Ruth had even managed to accumulate this much trash! It was quite impressive really. After hours of searching, Kevin came across an old box. It was like a little treasure chest. Thankfully, it contained exactly what he needed.
Memorabilia
Kevin had come across Ruth’s treasured box of memorabilia. Inside the box was not only the missing photo, but also some sentimental items, including a diploma and a trophy. The photo in question was clearly very old since it was faded. It showed Ruth’s parents as young lovers. While this box of goodies was interesting, Kevin was more drawn to an old bookcase that stood in the living room…
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Behind the old bookcase, Burns noticed a crack. Upon examining this more closely, he discovered, to his delight, that there was a gaping hole in the wall which was actually a doorway to a hidden room. His intrigue got the better of him and he pushed the shelves aside in order to get a closer look. What he found was shocking…
Secret Room
As Burns entered the secret room, his mind raced with questions. Was this the only hidden room or were there others? Were there more secrets that Ruth had been keeping? Burns had to know more, so he entered the secret room.
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When Burns stepped inside it, he realised he was in what had previously been a bedroom. He started to have some much darker thoughts. Had someone been held hostage in this room, perhaps Ruth? There were cobwebs everywhere, it was as if he had entered into a horror movie.
Mouldy Ceiling
One thing Burns did notice was that, while it was covered head to toe in dust and cobwebs, there was a lot less trash in this room. Despite this, the room still smelt awful. The stale air almost suffocated Burns, even through his mask. Burns inspected the dust covered photographs then looked above him. What he saw was completely horrifying…
Kevin Burns/Youtube
A thick layer of mould covered the bedroom ceiling. It had grown so thick that the paint had flaked off and fallen onto the floor below it. Burns quickly evacuated the room, knowing that it wouldn’t be good for him to ingest the air.
Death Trap
While there was still more of the house to explore, Burns felt that he needed to get out of the house as soon as possible. He had completed the mission of finding the photograph so his job was done. When Burns returned to Ruth, he confronted her about what he had just seen. He had to say something.
Kevin Burns/Youtube
He told Ruth that her house had become a death trap. She responded in saying: “I had no idea it had gotten so bad.” Ruth agreed to call a specialist and have the house professionally cleaned. However, Burns and Ruth’s story was not over yet. The worse was yet to come. Ruth would soon need her neighbour more than ever…
Specialist Advice
Burns decided against telling Ruth that he had discovered the secret room. He wanted to wait until the specialists arrived. Ruth had enough on her plate already! After taking a look inside, the specialists told Kevin and Ruth that the house was a hazard to the neighbours.
Kevin Burns/Youtube
The expert actually said that it was the worst case of mould he had ever seen. He even suggested that the house be demolished! It was clear that this needed to happen and it did, but in the most dramatic way possible…
Help From The Fire Department
The specialist explained to Ruth and Kevin that the mould was so dire that they wouldn’t be able to touch it. That’s how dangerous it was! Worse still, they explained that even the most advanced mould removal techniques wouldn’t be able to prevent this mould from spreading further still. There was only one thing for it, they would have to get the fire department involved.
Kevin Burns/Youtube
Why firefighters(?), you might ask. They needed firefighters to set the house on fire! The experts said that the best way to deal with this situation was to burn the entire house to the ground! The challenge for the firefighters was to control the fire so that it would not spread beyond the house itself.
Burning Day
Before they could set the house on fire, they needed to remove the objects that could catch on fire and become hazardous. The cleaning crew did this, with the help of Burns. Most things were covered in mould and had to be taken to the dump.
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Ruth couldn’t hold onto anything in the house. This was probably a good thing considering her hoarding tendencies. On the day the house was due to be burnt down, the crew went inside to check it over one last time. Ruth seemed to be surprisingly calm…
Final Farewells
While Ruth was obviously sad that the home she had called her own for decades was about to be destroyed, she felt that it was definitely time to move on. This was an opportunity for her to start fresh and kick her terrible hoarding habit. Ruth now had the comfort of her new friend Kevin Burns to help her along the way.
Kevin Burns/Youtube
Ruth said a tearful goodbye to her home as the firefighters prepared to burn it down once and for all. As she walked away from her property for the last time, she decided now was the time to reveal to Burns the truth behind the secret room he had discovered.
The Sad Truth Revealed
Ruth had everything she would ever need inside her car, all thanks to Burns. As the fire started and the house began to burn, Ruth explained the sad truth about the bedroom that Burns had seen. Tears streaming down her face, she explained: “that room was where my husband passed away. I didn’t have the heart to go in there after he was gone.”
Kevin Burns/Youtube
Upon hearing the story, Burns’ heart went out to his new friend and, for a split second, he considered whether Ruth could quickly head back into the house to say a final goodbye to the room. The moment had most definitely passed, the house was already starting to collapse.
Moving On
The firefighters had to stand by for a full 24 hours in order to ensure that neither the fire nor the embers spread to other houses or any nearby trees. As all of this played out, Burns wondered what Ruth’s next move would be…
Kevin Burns/Youtube
As the decades had passed, following the untimely death of her husband, Ruth had turned to hoarding to distract her. This was caused by the anxiety she suffered after losing the love of her life. With all of the items she had hoarded gone, she had the opportunity to start over.
A New Chapter
Ruth felt that she was far too old to start a new life. Where would she go? What would she do? Would she live out the rest of her days in her car? Burns had a better idea. With the help of his friends, he found a nearby community for senior citizens where she could go and get the help that she needed.
Kevin Burns/Youtube
The community was more than happy to accomodate Ruth. She was still suffering immensely from the death of her husband, but, up until this point, there hadn’t been anyone with whom she could have talked to about it. This was about to change, however. There were plenty of people living in the community who could help her to deal with her grief properly.
New Home
Ruth’s life had finally been transformed. She had gone from living alone in a car to having a proper roof over her head and people all around her. She was also able to get more exercise and eat healthier food. Burns stayed in touch with her and went to see her regularly.
Kevin Burns/Youtube
Kevin’s curiosity and kind-hearted nature had changed Ruth’s life forever. If he hadn’t followed his instincts, all of this would never have happened. Ruth owed her newfound happiness to him. She would never forget that.