Total loss house fire displaces family right before the holiday season
California, MD – All too often, a person or tragic situation makes today’s headline today, only to be forgotten once another arrives. This is what happened to St. Mary’s County native Catherine Hopewell who made headline news Monday, Nov. 14, due to a fast moving, two-alarm fire stemming from faulty wiring. However, when you are the current victim of a house fire your life changes suddenly and so dramatically, it is unbelievable. Eight lives were ultimately impacted forever during the early morning hours of Nov. 14 after the fire trucks pulled away from the San Souci neighborhood.
Lexington Park and Bay District Volunteer Fire Departments and Rescue Squads were dispatched to the scene of a house fire off MacArthur Boulevard. The first responders on the call were very helpful and informative, Catherine said. She received information about contacting the American Red Cross for disaster assistance.
Catherine’s household includes her two daughters, Katanya Hopewell, and Latonya Hopewell; grandsons Jermaine Patterson, 17, (twins) Jequese Patterson, 16 and Jequon Patterson, 16 and J’evion Patterson, 10 and her fiancé Steven Boyd.
The older boys attend Great Mills High School and the 10-year-old attends Lexington Park Elementary.
Catherine reflected more on the details of that early morning, “One of the volunteer firefighters was very helpful and saw I was devastated. All I could do was just stand there crying while they worked to put out flames.”
As Hopewell sat and reflected on Sunday before the tragedy occurred, she said, “We had a normal Sunday afternoon around the house, it was good. I made a big Sunday dinner, and when I cook all day I take dinner to my mom’s house in St. Inigoes for her.” After a brief pause, she shared “It was like the peace before the storm.”
Cooking, Sunday football, visiting my mother, getting the grandkids ready for the school week was the list she rattled off and said, “I had no idea at 1 a.m. my daughter would call me in a panic about the house being on fire.” Catherine and her fiancé often take advantage of the empty aisle of Walmart during the late-night hours she stated. “At the time the fire was happening I was shopping in Walmart and my daughter was trying to call me on my cell phone and couldn’t get a signal through in the store.”
Meanwhile, at Hopewell’s home, the smoke detector has gone off due to smoke that started in the laundry room. The noise from the detector alerted her 3-year-old Yorkie, Roscoe and he went to start waking up the household–kids first. Roscoe’s barking and agitation woke up Jequese first and he then proceeded to get others up and out the bed immediately
KaTanya Hopewell, stated “I was asleep, and suddenly my son Jequese came into my room screaming about smoke and fire. I then got up and walked into the kitchen which is near the laundry room.” It was a school night and close to 1 a.m. and all the children were asleep. Hopewell said she was disoriented at the time her son came into her room because the smoke detector was going off and the dog was barking like crazy.
Hopewell said, “I checked the stove first, naturally, because my mother had been cooking all morning. Then I looked down and saw smoke coming from the laundry room and my mother’s room is on the other side of that room. I immediately got scared and started yelling everyone’s name to get out the house. I looked back and what was smoke one minute was flames two minutes later.”
It seems that some house fires burn faster than others, and in this case, it was a rapidly moving fire that totally consumed the dwelling and contents.
“We all quickly realized that you can replace things, but you can’t replace people. Hopewell said, “I did not know my mom had left the house to go shopping at Walmart and I thought she may not have gotten out the house.” Catherine’s daughter, Katanya reflects on those scary moments and feels blessed that her mother was not home. It wasn’t until everyone got outside and she started to calm down and speak with her sister, Hopewell realized her mother’s car was gone and she was safe.
“The first thing that came to my mind was – are the ‘kids’ safe?” Catherine said with tears forming in her eyes. She explained that her grandsons had experienced a lot of loss recently. She then explained further, “Their father died three years ago, and they are really having a difficult time accepting this.”
Spoken like a true grandmother, “I wanted to make this Christmas special for them, Catherine said. I had already begun my shopping for the boys. I am a late-night bargain hunter and all the things were in the house.”
“An insult to the already injured,” said the house fire victim, as she described how her grandsons are handling the total loss devastation. This was a very destructive fire that destroyed precious items, pictures, and objects that were treasured by family members. Her daughter, Katanya Hopewell said, “All the pictures of their dad and other things of his are gone and that hurts.”
The recent displacement has been hard on them and changed their routine drastically. Her daughters and her grandchildren are staying in Scotland with an older grandson and she is staying in a property temporarily that belongs to her brother-in-law.
When asked about her plans were for the holidays, she replied, “Usually, I cook a big dinner, but I don’t even know where to start this year with no home to live in, everything has changed now.” Catherine said her family goes back at least 6 generations in St. Mary’s, specifically the St. Inigoes area. “If it wasn’t for family and friends – I don’t know what we would have done.”
Catherine said the night of the fire, family members had rushed to the scene and were there to comfort them. “I am in grief, it is like a death for me. I don’t want to cry because I have faith in God.
She stated she had been in contact with American Red Cross and was given some financial aid to purchase basic things. “This is so shocking. We lost everything and have to start over before the holidays.” Catherine said.
Contact Shertina Mack at s.mack@TheBayNet.com
