Family loses home in massive Golden Gate Estates brush fire

GOLDEN GATE ESTATES, Fla. – A family is heartbroken and restless, following the aftermath of a brush fire that ignited on 14th Avenue near DeSoto Boulevard Saturday afternoon.

“This is what we’re left with, nothing! We lost it all,” said homeowner Jonathan Perez. “When I got here (Saturday) I grabbed the buckets and water from the pond to try and keep the house cool so heat did not transfer and I lost that battle.”

The fire grew up to 1500-acres by Sunday afternoon and officials with the Florida Forestry Service (FFS) said at least two homes have been deemed complete losses and two others are damaged.

• 

• 

• 

• 

With everything destroyed, the family is now left to sleep in bunk beds in their garage.

“The RV burned down, can’t stay in that. The tents burned down so we don’t have those,” said Tracy Perez. “We have no insurance so without help there’s not much we can do at all.”

Perez said she tried saving what she could —

“I got my uncle’s ashes out yesterday and I couldn’t save anything else. There’s nothing. My daughter has not one memoir left. There’s nothing in here I can salvage for her, nothing! The sentimental stuff will be the worst stuff, like my Mother’s Day flowers. It’s sentiment you can’t replace,” said Tracy. 

But even with this setback, the family is remaining optimistic.

“We have to stay optimistic and positive because there’s no other way of handling a situation like this,” said Jonathan Perez.

The post Family loses home in massive Golden Gate Estates brush fire appeared first on NBC2 News.

NBC2 (WBBH-TV)