Woman dies after artificial Christmas tree sparks house fire
By Michelle Bandur
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NORTH HIGHLANDS, California (KCRA) — A woman who was pulled from a house fire in North Highlands Sunday morning has died, family told KCRA 3 on Monday.
The house fire was sparked by an artificial Christmas tree at a home on David Drive around 2 a.m. Sunday.
Investigators said the tree caused the electrical fire, and the home did not have working smoke detectors.
Neighbors said they woke up to a loud sound and looked out the window.
“You could see the flickering light on the tree and that’s kind of like the telltale sign of a fire,” said Richard Byer.
Byer and his wife Brandy ran three doors down and saw the family outside.
“They were screaming, ‘Destiny. There’s someone inside. There’s someone inside.’ There’s nothing any of us could do,” said Brandy Byers.
Richard Byers said he couldn’t just stand there and watch the house burn. He grabbed a fire extinguisher while another neighbor used a garden hose. Byers said a family member was motioning to the front window.
“That’s where I aimed my fire extinguisher, but the fire just came right back,” he said. “It was too intense, moving too fast.”
Ernest Isom, his wife, their son and his fiance and two other adults had fallen asleep celebrating Christmas Eve.
“Unfortunately, they wanted to keep the lights on until the last minute and we all happen to fall asleep and we had an instant, seconds to get out,” he said. “It was fast, and that’s how quick it went. I’m talking minutes.”
Sacramento Metro Fire department said an electrical short from the artificial Christmas tree started the fire.
The family lost everything.
“Everything, everything, down to my dogs, everything,” Isom said.
Two dogs died in the fire.
“It’s a miracle people got out at all. It was moving, it was intense,” said Richard Byers. “Unfortunately, she was the one who yelled fire, and that’s the sad part, she saved our lives.”
Loved ones have started a fundraiser for the family impacted by the fire.
Sacramento Metro Fire also said there were no working smoke detectors in the home.
They encourage people to check their batteries and make sure they are working.
The fire department will have a smoke detector campaign in early January to bring awareness and help families with installation.
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