Fire Displaces Seven Before Christmas

Grandmother, four children, and two grandchildren displaced after fire

Just days before Christmas, Estela Luna looks upon the burned remains of the house in Oak Cliff that was home to seven family members.

"It's devastating," Estela Luna says. "I guess it really hasn't set in yet."

Luna was running an errand Thursday morning when her four children and two grandchildren were chased from the home by flames.

"There was fire everywhere, it was just crazy," Estela Morin, Luna's daughter said. "People were banging on the door, trying to let us know, and the first thing was just to get my brother and my little girl out."

Everyone made it outside before calling Luna, who raced home.

"I was driving and I could see the smoke. I pulled up and could see all the fire trucks, and I was -- it was awful," Luna said.

Luna, a single mother, says she'll miss the comfort of a home she's made a life in for three generations. 

"Just standing back and looking at it now, it's just like -- we can't come home tonight, we just can't," said Morin.

Lost in the fire were photos, trophies, awards, and other items from Luna's children and grandchildren -- including items for Christmas.

Luna says it's not the holiday season she's thinking about right now -- it's about starting life over with the family who made it out safely.

"We're still here and everything is material. The house we can rebuild, but a loss, we couldn't -- I could not take a loss, so I'm grateful for that," said Luna.

Fire investigators say the blaze was started by a space heater that ignited bedding that was placed too close. The family is planning to stay in a hotel while they determine other living arrangements. Luna says the family will spend Christmas with other family members.

The American Red Cross says they will accept donations for the family, including clothes, toys, and monetary donations.

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