Bars Trap Victims inside Tampa House Fire
Grandmother and three children were trapped inside their burning home
KEITH MORELLI, The Tampa TribunePublished Wednesday, September 2, 2015
TAMPA - The fire started before dawn Tuesday. Its origin: an overloaded power strip in one of the small home's two bedrooms.
Firemen don't know when the woman and her three young grandchildren awoke to a house full of smoke and fire, but they know the four frantically tried to escape.
They couldn't.
"They were trapped by burglar bars on all the windows and doors," said Tampa Fire Marshal Milt Jenkins. "The iron gates required a key, even from the inside," he said.
Reshard Ashley, 8, Emjay Jackson, 3, and Sheryl James, 61, died in the fire. Romello Jackson, 8, was taken to Tampa General Hospital, where he was in critical condition Tuesday afternoon.
Jenkins said the four were separated as they tried to get out of the two-bedroom, 960-square-foot house in East Tampa.
"One of the kids was found in the bathroom next to a window," Jenkins said. He just couldn't get out.
Jenkins said the grandmother and the other two children were found in a back room, half under a mattress in a futile attempt to escape the flames.
"They probably got confused," he said. Disoriented in the smoke and the heat. "There were no smoke detectors or fire extinguishers in the house," he said. Jenkins said Romello was on life support and unresponsive at Tampa General.
The cause of the fire was an overloaded power strip or surge protector in the northeast bedroom, Jenkins said. Part of the electrical load on the system was a window-mounted air conditioner. He said the cord from the unit had been spliced down from a three-prong plug to a two-prong plug so it could fit into the power strip. The blaze was ruled accidental.
Stunned neighbors and relatives milled about in front of the house after firefighters left Tuesday afternoon.
They chatted in muted voices and hugged one another. They glanced at the small stucco home in the middle of the block, its roof buckled by the heat, revealing a charred interior.
Alicia Fletcher, 37, is the granddaughter of the man who owns the house at 3720 E. Paris St. County property records identify him as Clarence Fletcher. He is in St. Joseph's Hospital, suffering from Alzheimer's disease, she said.
She described James, who is listed in property records as co-owner of the house, as her grandfather's girlfriend. "I got a call from a cousin this morning who said my granddaddy's house was on fire," she said. "He's in the hospital now or he would have been in there. Thank God he was in the hospital."
She said she would often go to the house to visit and joke around with her grandfather and play with the children. "They were so full of life," she said.
She said her 89-year-old grandfather had not been told about the fire.
"This would be so hurtful for him," she said. He can't come back to his house.
Firefighters responded to the alarm just after 4:30 a.m. Tuesday and found heavy smoke and flames coming from the single-story 62-year-old home, said Tampa Fire Rescue spokesman Jason Penny.
"They entered the residence, found the woman and her three grandchildren and carried them out. One firefighter was taken to a hospital and treated for heat exhaustion," Penny said.
The fire destroyed the house. Investigators estimated the damage at $42,000.
Firemen don't know when the woman and her three young grandchildren awoke to a house full of smoke and fire, but they know the four frantically tried to escape.
They couldn't.
"They were trapped by burglar bars on all the windows and doors," said Tampa Fire Marshal Milt Jenkins. "The iron gates required a key, even from the inside," he said.
Reshard Ashley, 8, Emjay Jackson, 3, and Sheryl James, 61, died in the fire. Romello Jackson, 8, was taken to Tampa General Hospital, where he was in critical condition Tuesday afternoon.
Jenkins said the four were separated as they tried to get out of the two-bedroom, 960-square-foot house in East Tampa.
"One of the kids was found in the bathroom next to a window," Jenkins said. He just couldn't get out.
Jenkins said the grandmother and the other two children were found in a back room, half under a mattress in a futile attempt to escape the flames.
"They probably got confused," he said. Disoriented in the smoke and the heat. "There were no smoke detectors or fire extinguishers in the house," he said. Jenkins said Romello was on life support and unresponsive at Tampa General.
The cause of the fire was an overloaded power strip or surge protector in the northeast bedroom, Jenkins said. Part of the electrical load on the system was a window-mounted air conditioner. He said the cord from the unit had been spliced down from a three-prong plug to a two-prong plug so it could fit into the power strip. The blaze was ruled accidental.
Stunned neighbors and relatives milled about in front of the house after firefighters left Tuesday afternoon.
They chatted in muted voices and hugged one another. They glanced at the small stucco home in the middle of the block, its roof buckled by the heat, revealing a charred interior.
Alicia Fletcher, 37, is the granddaughter of the man who owns the house at 3720 E. Paris St. County property records identify him as Clarence Fletcher. He is in St. Joseph's Hospital, suffering from Alzheimer's disease, she said.
She described James, who is listed in property records as co-owner of the house, as her grandfather's girlfriend. "I got a call from a cousin this morning who said my granddaddy's house was on fire," she said. "He's in the hospital now or he would have been in there. Thank God he was in the hospital."
She said she would often go to the house to visit and joke around with her grandfather and play with the children. "They were so full of life," she said.
She said her 89-year-old grandfather had not been told about the fire.
"This would be so hurtful for him," she said. He can't come back to his house.
Firefighters responded to the alarm just after 4:30 a.m. Tuesday and found heavy smoke and flames coming from the single-story 62-year-old home, said Tampa Fire Rescue spokesman Jason Penny.
"They entered the residence, found the woman and her three grandchildren and carried them out. One firefighter was taken to a hospital and treated for heat exhaustion," Penny said.
The fire destroyed the house. Investigators estimated the damage at $42,000.
Penny said James, who is mother to the boys' father, was pronounced dead at the scene. Reshard died at St. Joseph's Hospital. Emjay and Romello were taken to Tampa General, where Emjay was pronounced dead.
Ariel Dunlap, 21, lives next door and was awake at 4:30 a.m. Tuesday as her father, Antonio Dunlap, got ready for work. She saw flames next door and called 911 as her father ran to the house.
"He was banging on the doors and windows to get them to open the door," she said. Nobody came to the door.
She said she watched when firefighters arrived and began fighting the fire, eventually carrying the woman and the three children out of the burning house.
"I was in a panic," she said. "I was speechless."
She knew the children well. "They were sweethearts," Dunlap said. "They were not troublemakers. They were respectful, and I loved them like they were my own."
Less than a mile away, a moment of silence was observed Tuesday morning at Sheehy Elementary School, where the two 8-year-old boys attended classes.
"It is a difficult day," said Diane Levy, assistant principal at Sheehy. "A sad day today."
She described the two third-graders as sweet polite boys who never got in trouble and greeted her with hugs when they saw her in the mornings.
"Students, faculty and administrators are in shock," she said. "Our teachers are trying to take one minute at a time, she said. We are like family here."
Crisis team counselors were in the school Tuesday morning, attending each class the two boys would have been in to talk to their classmates about what happened and how to deal with grief.
Vito Ricciardi, a school psychologist and 27-year-member of the district's crisis intervention team, said students wrote cards for their two classmates' family.
"The third-graders are a little bit in shock," he said. "They expect their classmates to be there, playing video games. ... An empty desk is difficult."
He held some hand-drawn cards, written in crayon, from students.
'I miss you,' said one. 'I hope we can see you one day.' Another was adorned with hearts. 'I'm sorry for your loss. He was funny. He was nice.'
Back on Paris Street, neighbors walked by the house or stood nearby, heavy with the loss.
"I heard about the fire, and I came over here," said Veronica Norton, who lives one street to the south. She said she knew James and her grandkids.
"I'd see her all the time, walking down the street with her grandkids," she said. They always were with her.
Tuesday evening, friends and relatives held a candlelight vigil outside the house. Dozens of people surrounded a weathered concrete block mailbox with flowers, stuffed animals and other gifts. After a song, they huddled around the Rev. Zackary Roberts, 57, of Evening Star Tabernacle, who said a prayer.
One of the people carrying a candle was Clarence Fletcher's daughter, Betty Fletcher, 59, who said she learned about the fire at 5:20 a.m. Tuesday.
"I was really about to pass out," she said. They had to put me together.
kmorelli@tampatrib.com
(813) 259-7760Reporter Mark Wolfenbarger contributed to this report.
Ariel Dunlap, 21, lives next door and was awake at 4:30 a.m. Tuesday as her father, Antonio Dunlap, got ready for work. She saw flames next door and called 911 as her father ran to the house.
"He was banging on the doors and windows to get them to open the door," she said. Nobody came to the door.
She said she watched when firefighters arrived and began fighting the fire, eventually carrying the woman and the three children out of the burning house.
"I was in a panic," she said. "I was speechless."
She knew the children well. "They were sweethearts," Dunlap said. "They were not troublemakers. They were respectful, and I loved them like they were my own."
Less than a mile away, a moment of silence was observed Tuesday morning at Sheehy Elementary School, where the two 8-year-old boys attended classes.
"It is a difficult day," said Diane Levy, assistant principal at Sheehy. "A sad day today."
She described the two third-graders as sweet polite boys who never got in trouble and greeted her with hugs when they saw her in the mornings.
"Students, faculty and administrators are in shock," she said. "Our teachers are trying to take one minute at a time, she said. We are like family here."
Crisis team counselors were in the school Tuesday morning, attending each class the two boys would have been in to talk to their classmates about what happened and how to deal with grief.
Vito Ricciardi, a school psychologist and 27-year-member of the district's crisis intervention team, said students wrote cards for their two classmates' family.
"The third-graders are a little bit in shock," he said. "They expect their classmates to be there, playing video games. ... An empty desk is difficult."
He held some hand-drawn cards, written in crayon, from students.
'I miss you,' said one. 'I hope we can see you one day.' Another was adorned with hearts. 'I'm sorry for your loss. He was funny. He was nice.'
Back on Paris Street, neighbors walked by the house or stood nearby, heavy with the loss.
"I heard about the fire, and I came over here," said Veronica Norton, who lives one street to the south. She said she knew James and her grandkids.
"I'd see her all the time, walking down the street with her grandkids," she said. They always were with her.
Tuesday evening, friends and relatives held a candlelight vigil outside the house. Dozens of people surrounded a weathered concrete block mailbox with flowers, stuffed animals and other gifts. After a song, they huddled around the Rev. Zackary Roberts, 57, of Evening Star Tabernacle, who said a prayer.
One of the people carrying a candle was Clarence Fletcher's daughter, Betty Fletcher, 59, who said she learned about the fire at 5:20 a.m. Tuesday.
"I was really about to pass out," she said. They had to put me together.
kmorelli@tampatrib.com
(813) 259-7760Reporter Mark Wolfenbarger contributed to this report.
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