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2 Inland Empire families' homes destroyed in fire; family of 8 hospitalized

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Published  November 29, 2024 7:31pm PST
Colton
FOX 11
article

The Brief

    • Two families' homes in Colton were destroyed by a massive fire Friday morning.
    • An entire family of eight was hospitalized. Six are still in the hospital as of Friday night.
    • A family member said one of the children suffered burns to 25% of his body.
    • The second family was uninjured, but their home was also destroyed.

COLTON, Calif. - Two Colton families are without homes the day after Thanksgiving after a massive house fire destroyed both early Friday morning. An entire family of eight was hospitalized, and three remain in critical condition. 

It happened around 5 a.m. Firefighters were called out to the home on N. 9th Street where the fire started. 

Maria Fernanda Cruz Vazquez is the neighbors' daughter. She told FOX 11 that her brother "heard popping sounds, and he called the police right away." Her mother then ran over to the house and saw her neighbor in a second-story window, and told the woman "Toss me your kids," Vazquez said. Together with another good Samaritan, they were able to catch the kids and get them to safety.

Vazquez told FOX 11 that it took just five minutes from when her brother initially heard popping sounds until their neighbors' home was completely engulfed in flames. 

All eight members of that family were taken to the hospital.

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In a GoFundMe created for the family, a relative said that both parents remain in the hospital as of Friday evening, and are being treated for severe smoke inhalation. One of their sons is at an Orange County burn center after suffering burns to 25% of his body. Three of the children are still in the hospital as well; two have been released.

The fire also destroyed Vazquez's family's home next door. Her mother, father, grandmother and brother all live in the home.

"There's 13 people in total now that don't have a home, that don't have [somewhere] to go tonight," Vazquez said, adding that her family was lucky to walk away from the fire uninjured.

Vazquez also highlighted the support from the community during and immediately after the fire, saying that after firefighters had left the scene, community members stuck around to help.

"I'm wearing a sweater from one of our neighbors. I'm wearing shoes from one of my neighbors," Vazquez said. "Everyone came out with blankets. It's such a welcoming environment, a loving community… We wouldn't have been able to help any of those kids if it wasn't for the community. So just thank you for being there for us."

The Source

  • This story was reported with information from the Colton Fire Department, a GoFundMe campaign for one of the families, and an interview with Maria Fernanda Cruz Vazquez.