A house fire left a Rio Grande City woman and her three grandchildren homeless Sunday afternoon.
Family members told Action 4 News that Paula Lopez worked hard to build up the house ever since she bought it nearly 45 years ago.
"The major damage was to one bedroom, there's a lot of smoke damage as far as throughout the rest of house," Rio Grande City Assistant Fire Chief Manuel Muniz said.
According to Muniz, the fire began out doors on the side of the house on the 800 block of Hidalgo Street.
"Right now the area of concern is on the outside wall, there is some wiring that might've been the cause of the accident," he added.
However, most of the damage happened inside the home.
"Now we have to try to get something to repair the wall where it all burned and replace the clothes, the bed, everything," Lopez’s daughter, Mary Couturier, said.
She said the flames destroyed the only closet the family had, and all of the family's clothes inside them.
"If people can come and help her with whatever, we really appreciate it," she pleaded.
The family said they are thankful that neither Lopez nor any of her grandchildren were injured.
But now they said they have a tough time ahead.
"She's been sick, she can’t afford to go to the doctor or nothing,” Couturier added. “She's always walking to school with the kids and I don’t know what she's gonna do."
In the meantime, Lopez and her grandchildren will spend the night at a family member’s home, but they are asking for help to be back in their very own.
If anyone is interested in helping out Lopez, she has opened a bank account with the Starr County Teachers’ Federal Credit Union.
It is under the name Paula Lopez, and the last number on the account is 3405.
They can also contact her son Leo Leal at (956) 263-9674.
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