Denver Mother Discovers Home Engulfed in Flames After School Drop-Off

Share and Follow

A Denver mother experienced a harrowing moment when she returned home after taking her daughter to school, only to find her house engulfed in flames. As firefighters battled the blaze, she recounted her emotional ordeal to FOX31, expressing both sorrow and thankfulness.

The Denver Fire Department was dispatched to the scene of the fire just before 10 a.m. on Thursday. The incident occurred at a residence located near the intersection of Colorado Boulevard and Colfax Avenue.

Ever wondered why Denver’s firetrucks are painted white instead of the traditional red?

“I noticed the firetrucks and thought it was unusual to see them in this part of town,” Raven Mendez explained. “When I pulled into the back, my neighbor, who had bravely entered my home to try and extinguish the fire with a garden hose, was at the back window. He shouted, ‘Go get the dogs,’ while he was inside our bedroom window.”

Raven Mendez shared with FOX31 the intense moments she experienced, returning from the school drop-off to the shocking sight of her home on fire.

DFD told FOX31 dogs and cats were rescued and given oxygen for smoke inhalation. Now, they are working to determine what caused the fire.

“So fire department saying it’s accidental when you have cats, anything is really an accident,” Mendez said. “The facts point to it started in the kitchen and most of the most of the walls in the top, the living room in the kitchen are covered in smoke. It’s it’s really a blessing that everyone got out to be honest with you.”

Mendez is focused on blessings right now.

“I’m a single mom, I have a 12-year-old, three-year-old,” Mendez said. “I go to work every day. I cook dinner and do school runs. I want to be ‘Mrs. Fix it’ but I can’t right now. I can’t. And I don’t have the ability to do that. But being able to really like talk to everyone and feeling that support has been like crucial. Complete strangers. Firefighters. Is everyone just really, just like, lending that support.”

Mendez says she moved to Denver to pursue her passion of art and she is so grateful to also discover the community that is rallying behind her. Her canvases and creations were not destroyed in the fire, something she is grateful for.

“I think right now is probably a really good time to use that as like a therapy session because the backyard is still usable, I can still use that and so do my artwork,” Mendez said.

Red Cross came by to connect and see how they could support Mendez’s family and pets.