Two weeks after Bob Kramer tragically died in fire at the marionette theater, Dug Feltch sits down with News 4

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (KMOV) - It’s been just over two weeks since a fire destroyed Bob Kramer’s Marionettes and Bob Kramer lost his life.

Kramer’s partner Dug Feltch survived the fire and sat down with News 4 on Saturday.

“I might have been the face of Bob Kramer’s Marionettes but Bob was the soul,” Feltch said.

On Jan. 20, a fire tore through the building.

Kramer and Feltch not only worked there, but also lived there.

On that Friday night, Kramer went downstairs to work on some of the puppets. Feltch said after some time passed, he went downstairs to check on him.

“I was just inundated with the blackest, most horrible smoke,” Feltch said. “My first thought was Bob so I started thinking this will pass but it didn’t. It got stronger and worse and I couldn’t breathe.”

That’s when Feltch went back upstairs and called 911.

“I kept saying there’s someone inside, there’s someone inside,” Feltch said. “But I have to believe that he was gone because that smoke was just unbelievable.”

As firefighters went inside the building, Feltch followed in the hopes of helping Bob.

“It was terrifying that I just couldn’t get my breath,” Feltch said.

What happened next is a blur for Feltch. He was taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation and spent a week there. Five of those days, Feltch was intubated.

Feltch is calling his recovery miraculous, especially thanks to those at BJC.

“The first thing I remember when I was coming out of this was (a BJC worker) holding my hand saying you are strong, you are healthy, you are getting better every day,” Feltch said.

The house was a total loss, but Feltch also lost everything inside.

“The hardest thing besides losing Bob was losing a lifetime of work,” Feltch said. “That’s still very difficult to deal with.”

Friends, community members and even strangers have come together to help Feltch get back on his feet, which is what has helped him the most during these tough two weeks.

“Every time I start going down the sad road, how can I go there with all of this love and support around me,” Feltch said.

This is not the end for Feltch and puppets.

“People keep asking me ‘you’re not thinking about retiring are you?’ I said not at this moment at all,” Feltch said.

His next goal is to open a puppetry center in St. Louis.

Feltch is planning a memorial for Kramer at the Botanical Garden in May.

The fire department told News 4 the investigation into this fire is still open but currently listed as “unresolved”— meaning they haven’t been able to definitively identify the origin and cause of the fire.

You can donate to the GoFundMe or help Feltch by buying a shirt.

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