TAMPA, Fla. — While much of Tampa Bay braced for Tropical Storm Eta, a local family was in a desperate fight to save their home from a fire.
Tampa Firefighters responded to the home on Hamilton Avenue Wednesday afternoon to find heavy smoke and flames spreading through the kitchen and attic.
“I don’t have a house,” said Vivian Miranda. “Everything is destroyed.”
It was a tough one-two punch as severe weather hit Tampa not long after the fire started on the family’s backyard patio.
Antonio Miranda, 22, was sleeping in the home. He credits a phone call from a friend and a neighbor yelling next door for alerting him to the emergency.
“I’m grateful every day that I got that call from him,” said Antonio. “God gave me another chance to keep living my life to my best-kept abilities so, you know, I will always have a positive outlook over everything.”
Investigators are still trying to figure out what started the fire. They say it did about $40,000 in damages.
Above all else, the Miranda family remains thankful.
Friends and family members are now raising money to help them get back on their feet and find a new permanent place to live.
“You can always buy another TV,” said Antonio. “You can always buy another game system or a new pair of shoes, but you can’t buy somebody’s life back."
