A father and his three children have lost their home in Butte - a fire claimed Ed’s house along with everything in it just days before Christmas.
According to his sister Kim Martinez, Ed had taken his three kids to grab lunch at Subway. When they returned, the house was engulfed in flames.
"He just kept saying over and over is ‘How did my house catch on fire, I don’t understand?’" said Martinez.
Fire officials believe the fire started in the basement and worked its way up to the attic; the cause of the fire is still being investigated. It took firefighters more than two hours to put out the fire.
Nothing in the house was salvageable.
Ed was able to save the family’s two dogs trapped inside, but the family watched the house burn along with the remaining pets he was unable to save in time.
"He’s had a really hard year and a half so it was just completely devastating something else would happen," said Martinez.
Martinez started a GoFundMe account to ask the community for help; click here if you would like to donate.
"We have a really tight family, but I don’t know how to help someone rebuild their entire life without relying on community, and I’ve lived all over the country and Butte is such an amazing community and I’ve never lived anywhere like Butte," said Martinez.
Martinez hopes that the community can help her brother and his family move forward after a traumatic event.
"I just knew that if there ever was a community to step up, it would be the people of Butte," said Martinez.
