Support needed for fire victims

It deeply saddens me to be sitting here at this time, in this moment and under these circumstances. I received a phone call from my brother at 4:11 AM on July 11th 2015. I had just missed his call and was in the process of dialing him back when his voicemail came through. I decided to listen to his voicemail before returning his call to prepare myself with what he had to say because as we all know, receiving a phone call at such a time is never anything good.  The voicemail from my panicked brother stumbling on his words said:

 “Hey Sis, this is not a joke. My house is on fire and it’s a rager, its bad. We are all outside. Call me back”

I frantically called him back trying to wrap my mind around the words he had just said.  He informed me that him and Dylan were safe. But scared and cold.

I hung up the phone and stumbled around my house grabbing clothes for Dylan (who was outside in nothing but his pajama shorts), food, water and whatever I could get my hands on that would help.  I rushed from 5th street to  21st street to by my family’s side. When I got there the scene was so horrific I was overwhelmed with so many different emotions. There were panicked families everywhere. Fire trucks, police cars, ambulances, news reporters and the devastating fire.  I found my family and embraced them with so much love, kisses, and hugs.

The scene around me was heartbreaking and more than I could handle. One of the boys that lived in the house, who my nephew played with often was crying because he was not only scared and confused but he was also cold. He was missing his family members that were rushed to the hospital, he was crying for his house and was tugging at my shirt for the sweater I had in my hands. He gave me many hugs and I hugged him right back. I could’ve held him forever.

At my feet was his sister, who is 9. She was laying on the sidewalk under a blanket. She was unable to move, in need of her medication. Even more so with all the stress she was experiencing. Her medication was not savable and perished in the fire. The family would soon come to find out that two of their family members did not survive.

With all of this going on around me, I learned that the fire had started on third floor and quickly engulfed the house in flames (the cause of the fire is still unknown).

My brother’s roommate, Dan, returned home shortly before the fire broke out. He was watching a movie when he heard what he said sounded like popping noises followed by glass breaking. He ran outside to see what all the commotion was about and saw that the house was on fire. He ran back in to wake up my brother and nephew who were sound asleep. They all made it to safety. If it weren’t for Dan being home and hearing the initial blast, there’s a good chance my brother and nephew would have died in the fire.

I am setting this page up for anyone who would like to make a donation, my brother and nephew lost absolutely everything and have to rebuild their lives.

I am currently dealing with my nephew who has fallen mute. He doesn’t say much of anything. He is glassy and distant. My brother is suffering from bad shakes and panic attacks. We have a long road ahead of us and any help would mean more to us than you will ever know. It would be appreciated with all of our heart and soul.

Your donations will also help my brother’s roommate Dan and all the families that was affected by this devastating and tragic fire.    

 * I kept this post as short and to the point as I could. Since I am in such an emotional state about this situation I did not want to ramble. If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact me. I will answer you whole heartedly.

Graciously,

 Jennifer Tomassi