Mother of five killed in house fire Monday night

A fire broke out at a duplex in East Naples on Monday night. Now, a woman is dead and five other people have been left without a home.

The family of the woman who died came to the site of the fire hoping to make sense of what happened. Initially, all the kids could see was ash and dust in the place where a house once stood. But they were able to find their mother’s bible.

The mother of five who died in this fire was in her 50s. A neighbor, Barry Priddy, as the flames coming from the home. “I smelled something burning so I checked around the side of the house and I seen fire just rolling out of the windows and then it was terrible,” said Priddy.

The children of the victim returned to the fire scene on Tuesday afternoon. They held each other and cried but were able to find some comfort.

William White was inside his apartment when he heard a neighbor scream. “I have little flashbacks of her every once in a while,” said White. “Me and her would sit right here and we talked had a good time. She’s a very good person.”

He said he went out to see what was going on when he heard the screaming. “I went out there to see what she was screaming about and smoke was just coming out of this apartment over there like nobody’s business,” said White.

Firefighters worked tirelessly and performed CPR on the woman but couldn’t save her. “I have little flashbacks of her every once in a while,” White said. “She’s in a better place.” White says that what happens next is up to God.

Two other families lost their homes in the fire and the Red Cross is assisting them.

The cause of this fire is still under investigation.