Colorado woman without renters insurance loses everything in condo fire
A woman in Aurora says her life was changed in an instant when the condo she was renting caught on fire. It serves as a reminder to invest in renters insurance. While most property companies require it, this is a lesson in how valuable it can be.
"I wasn't expecting that on a Sunday morning. Not at all," the woman said. She spoke to CBS Colorado but asked we not use her name.
The woman says she was cooking breakfast for her family on Nov. 12 when her boyfriend called out to her.
"I seen a ball of fire over his head and black smoke coming toward us," she said.
Fire was spreading from her bathroom ceiling into her room.
"That was my first thought was my grandson," she said.
She ran to wake her son and 8-month-old grandson, who were visiting.
"His face was covered with black smoke," she said.
Everyone inside, plus her boyfriend's dog, made it out. But the woman says her grandson is being treated for carbon monoxide poisoning.
"My grandson is suffering and for what reason? Why? I wanna know why," she said.
The woman's landlord says he's not aware of any electrical issues. The cause of the fire is under investigation by Aurora Fire and Rescue.
"Everything's gone. This is terrible. Everything's gone gone," she said.
Two weeks later, the woman walked through what's left of her home.
"Pictures, baby pictures," she said, "it meant a lot to me because it was my kids like memories. I can't replace it, I can't get that back."
Unfortunately, she didn't have renters insurance. And to make matters worse, most of her money was in cash and was lost in the fire.
"I have no money. All my savings was in my mattress," she said.
The American Red Cross and her landlord put her up in a hotel for 10 days, but now, she faces homelessness.
"I'm just taking it one day at a time," she said.
The woman says she's trying to sell what possessions she has left to afford a few more nights in a hotel but she's not sure what's next for her.