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Fire destroys multiple homes in south Tulsa

By: Ryan Love , Jeanette Quezada

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TULSA, Okla. — Emergency crews responded to a fire Tuesday afternoon that spread to multiple homes.

Tulsa firefighters battled the fire that affected three homes near 81st Street and Delaware around 3:30 p.m. Firefighters say the fire spread from the first home to the second unit a duplex within 10 minutes due to the windy conditions. The blaze was so intense even one of the ladder trucks was damaged.

As firefighters monitored hotspots, we spoke to Lavonda Robinson one of the homeowners who lost their home in this fire.

She says she was pulling onto the street to pick up her son, who was being dropped off from school, when she noticed the plume of smoke from a distance.

“Before I knew it, I’m looking at my house go up in flames. I’m looking at the front yard catch on fire. I’m just totally flabbergasted. I don’t know how to feel," Robinson said. "I pretty much lost everything tonight, so I feel horrible. I feel devastated. I feel like I have nothing left. It’s been a rough year for me 2022, and this was like another major blow for me and my family.”

Neighbors also recounting the tragedy as it unfolded before their eyes.

“The fireballs were going up in the air higher than the ladder. Just watched one house, and the wind was coming from the north at the time, was kind of worried about it hitting our house," said Jennifer Salter. "Then the wind switched and it just caught the other house probably within the 15 minutes I was sitting there.”

Losing your home is not an easy thing to go through, especially during the holiday’s but Robinson says she’s grateful her family and her neighbors are safe. Despite losing everything, she is trying to stay positive.

“It is a horrible time to have to start over especially when you have nothing to start with. You have to start completely from the bottom and go on to the top but hey that's how they say it works right? You start from the bottom and go on to the top," Robinson said. “As long as we’ve got each other, there's no way we can’t go wrong, we can rebuild from there. It’s the holiday season somebody has got to spread some cheer somewhere."

She also says she has family that is taking her and her son in while they start to rebuild.

Nobody was inside either home at the time of the fire. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.