Update: Ellsworth has died, reports the Dallas Morning News, according to the Dallas County Medical Examiner’s Office
Original post: A longtime Lake Highlands resident clings to life this morning following an overnight fire which destroyed her home.
Nancy Ellsworth was pulled from her house at 9912 Milltrail by rescue crews. Her husband, Jerry, escaped the rapidly moving flames.
The fire began about 10:30 p.m., and neighbors say Jerry, in his 80s, discovered the problem in his garage and went into the house to warn his wife. He thought she was right behind him.
“I could see an orange glow, then I heard the pop, pop, pop from the ammunition in his garage,” said Yvette Atkins, who lives two doors down. When she stepped outside, Jerry was out front, expecting his wife to walk out any minute. She was limp when rescue workers loaded her into a waiting ambulance.
“These firemen, they are heroes,” said Yvette. “They said it got up to 1200 degrees in that house – I can’t even imagine that. Those guys came out of that house drenched in sweat. They’d put the fire out, then it would flare up in another area of the house. They stayed here all night, watching to make sure we were all safe.”
It’s too soon to know the cause of the fire, but investigators say they’ll examine the Ellsworth’s Federal Pacific electrical breaker panel.
“In the five years we’ve lived in our home, there have been five homes within a block or two burn to the ground,” warned Amy Timmerman, neighbor and LH real estate agent, in a message to friends and clients. “If you do not have smoke detectors, get them; if you have them, check them; if you have not had your home electrical system updated or checked (no matter what age your home), do it. No matter what the price, it is not worth another life.”
