TULSA, Okla. — A Tulsa mother lost all of her belongings after a big fire at the home she was renovating.
“When we came out the flames were jumping from here,” said LaKeisha Smith. “They were peeling roof off.”
The fire caused a lot of damage to the property, destroying the roof and nearly everything inside the home. Smith says someone likely broke in through a back bedroom window.
“When my dad lived here it was his,” said Smith. “When he gave the house to me it became my bedroom.”
Smith first lived at the home in 2009 with her kids. She moved back last year to take care of her dad who’s dealing with Alzheimer's. She lives in the house next door with him and her daughter while they were renovating the home.
“It’s devastating to see your life in piles,” said Smith. “You might get a picture here or something there.”
They didn’t have utilities connected so the Tulsa Fire Department ruled the fire incendiary. It means someone started the fire, but not necessarily maliciously like with arson. Andy Little with TFD said it could’ve been homeless people trying to stay warm. He says it’s a growing concern.
“People will break into these structures to stay warm and they may start a fire for cooking or to increase the warmth in that structure which leads to a house fire,” said Little.
Little said they’re seeing vacant structure fires almost daily and as temperatures start to drop, they plan to respond to even more fires.
“When you add fire to a situation like that it rapidly changes the structure makes it dangerous for people to be inside,” said Little.
Lakeisha said she doesn’t know if it was squatters or something more intentional.
“It’s hard to believe that somebody would come through without thought,” said Smith. “If you were in there you saw there was stuff in there. There was furniture. There were clothes.”
There’s a giant dumpster outside collecting piles of burned property, but Smith says it’s home and she’ll do what she can to rebuild.
“Stay hopeful,” said Smith. “Keep faith that we’re going to keep moving forward that’s all I can do.”
The Tulsa Fire Department says if you see someone getting into a vacant home, you can call the Mayor’s Action Line at 311. Andy Little says they’ll contact Working in Neighborhoods to get the structures boarded up and make them safer.
LaKeisha Smith's daughter started a GoFundMe as her family rebuilds.
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