House fire leaves La Pine family homeless — again
Seven people, including a 2-week-old baby, escaped a house fire in La Pine Monday night.
The house is gone — and amazingly, this is not the first time this family has had to flee a fire.
“Last night, the children came banging on the door, we were just going to bed about 11:30,” Rosemary Kim, the victims’ mother, said Tuesday.
The scene was far too familiar for the Blake family.
“In a matter of minutes, the whole roof, the whole center of the trailer…” said homeowner Tina Blake, fighting back tears.
Blake lost her house to another fire in April of 2012. Their new manufactured home was just moved onto the same site in recent months.
She was finally back on her feet and never thought it could happen again to her family.
“For children to have to go through this once, then to have to go through it again,” Kim said, also tearfully.
Blake’s son woke her up to say he smelled smoke.
Before they knew it, it consumed the house.
She sent her kids to their grandma’s, who owns the 10-acre property.
“I thought it was just going to be in the one area — you know, I thought they were going to be able to get it out,” Blake said. “It didn’t look that bad. It really didn’t look that bad.”
Kim added, “It’s just — you know, starting over every couple years isn’t easy.”
Fifteen firefighters were no match for the flames, which killed two dogs and a rabbit.
“It’s just most horrible thing in the world that could happen to a family,” Kim said.
The youngest survivor was Blake’s 2-week-old grandson, Jacob. Her four children got out just in time.
“I’ve got my family, and that’s what matters, you know?” she said, fighting to smike. “I got my kids. And we’ve done it before, we can do it again.”
Because the house was not yet complete, the family was unable to insure it.
All they have now is the clothes on their back.
The Red Cross stepped in to help, but they are in desperate need of diapers, shoes, bedding, furniture and any other basic necessities.
You can drop off donations to the Holy Redeemer Church in La Pine at 13167 Burgess Road.
The official cause of the fire is not yet known, but they do know it started from the area where the chimney and ceiling meet.
