A family escaped injury and one firefighter received minor injuries Saturday when flames swept through the second story of a Fruitland Park home.
Firefighters from Leesburg and Lake County responded to the fire, which according to a GoFundMe page for the family, left them hunkered down in a hotel. The GoFundMe page also says the blaze is being investigated as a possible electrical fire.
Leesburg Fire Rescue’s Engine 56 was the first to arrive at the residence and its crew confirmed a working fire in the second story of the structure. Those firefighters handled the primary attack on the flames, while the crew from Engine 62 handled the primary search and outside venting of the burning residence, a report states.
Firefighters from Leesburg Engine 61 also were called to the fire and they handled the outside work and overhaul of the damaged structure, while a Leesburg Fire Rescue battalion chief held command over the efforts to extinguish the blaze.
One Leesburg firefighter received minor injuries during the blaze. But Leesburg Fire Rescue Deputy Chief Joseph Mera said that firefighter was transported to a local hospital and discharged with non-life-threatening injuries.
Amber Bell posted on Facebook that she and four of her children were at home when the fire broke out. She said her husband. R.J., was out at the time with some of their other children and the flames destroyed half of the house. But she added that everyone was “OK, just a bit shaken up.
“Just please say prayers for our family,” Bell posted.
Bell’s ex-mother-in-law, Heather Iiams-Andre, set up the GoFundMe account to help the family with expenses as they try to recover from the blaze.
“Fortunately, everyone is alive albeit quite shaken,” she wrote in her posting. “We are hopeful they will be able to salvage personal items in the coming days. The future is somewhat uncertain.
Iiams-Andre added in the GoFundMe posting that she was thankful the fire occurred early in the evening rather than after everyone had gone to bed for the night.
“There could have been an entirely different outcome,” she said.
Those wishing to contribute to the GoFundMe effort can click HERE. As of late Monday morning, $2,143 of the $5,000 goal had been collected. A total of 11 people had donated, with the posting being shared 153 times. The largest donation was from April Brandenburg for $1,000, followed by $500 from Iiams-Andre and $200 from Jim Lane.