LITHIA, Fla. — A father and his two children were killed after a fire broke out Monday afternoon at a home in Lithia, according to the Hillsborough County Fire Rescue. The mother and another child narrowly escaped, Sheriff Chad Chronister said.
Firefighters responded along with the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office to a mobile home fire near Pritcher Road and Castro Estates Lane.
During a news conference Monday, Chronister said the 22-year-old mother Veronica Bermudez told the first arriving sheriff's deputy she woke up to her 3-year-old son Elijah alerting her the home was on fire.
"He was mom's notifier, he walked in the room telling her, 'Mommy, mommy, the house was on fire! The house was on fire!' She was able to run outside with him," Suzette Pena, a cousin of Bermudez, said.
The woman told authorities she grabbed Elijah and ran outside while her husband, 22-year-old Angel Lopez Sr., grabbed the other two children, 5-year-old Angel Lopez Jr. and 14-month-old Harmony Lopez. Once safe from the fire, the woman looked back and realized her husband and other two children did not make it out, Chronister said.
"The deputy said he's never felt more helpless in his entire career being a deputy sheriff," Chronister said.
First responders arrived and were aware of the situation. However, when crews began assessing a point of entry, the blaze was too hot to enter and crews had to remain at least 20 feet back from the mobile home.
Chronister said firefighters were met with "intense fire conditions," preventing them from an immediate rescue. During the fire, the majority of the roof also collapsed, first responders said.
"This is horrible, no baby deserves this. She's really heartbroken. She says she wishes her life would be over. She says there's really nothing else to live for," Pena said.
Once firefighters were able to get inside and rescue the father, they realized he had already passed away due to the fire. The remaining children, a 5-year-old boy and a 14-month-old baby girl, also died in the fire, authorities said.
The mother and 3-year-old son who escaped were taken to the hospital for precautionary measures but were said to be OK, Chronister said.
At this time, fire officials have not said what caused the fire. A total of 13 units responded to the mobile home fire.
The family wonders if more could've been done to save lives, asking if fire crews responded quickly enough and if the landowner kept everything in the park up to date.
"I'm pretty sure more could've been done. It wouldn't save everybody, but I felt like at least one person would have been saved. There's an investigation being done and we're waiting on that. We want to know what happened. Someone will be held accountable," Pena said.