CORPUS CHRISTI (Kiii News) -
A family of 13 is left with just the clothes on their backs after their home on the 2000 block of Van Loan was destroyed in an overnight fire.
Now, the six adults and seven kids are left looking for a new place to call home.
The Piñon family was caught off guard by the fire Monday night, which started at around 9:45 p.m.
"I took off to the back door, tried to stop someone," said Dora Vazadula, a resident of that home. "The phones, we left them in the house. We tried to wave someone down to help us."
It all started when smoke was seen coming out of the vents. Vazadula looked around and saw flames coming out of the garage. She yelled to her husband, and managed to get him, her kids and grandkids out of the house.
Investigators believe the fire started near the water heater. The home suffered extensive smoke and fire damage.
The family said they are just lucky it happened before they all went to bed, and now they are asking for help to start over.
"Anything to help us get back to where we need to be," said Rafael Rivera, who also lived in that house. "It's just the children. We are trying to get to a house."
No one was injured in this fire. The garage, dining room., living room and attic were all burned, and smoke damage was found throughout the rest of the house.
The American Red Cross is assisting the family with food, clothing and temporary shelter. The family is looking to find a new place to stay after Tuesday night. They hope to stay with family on the weekend when their nephew's house will be ready. They will be renting his home.
In the meantime, on Tuesday they tried to salvage what they could; some pictures and memories, and maybe some clothes.
Another problem is that one of their kids has asthma.
If you would like to help the family, you can contact them at 361-558-3100. Metro Ministries is also helping the family out by helping them pay rent. They just need to find a house first.
