Who was Isabela Martinez? Georgia mom, 3 little daughters dead after being trapped in burning mobile home
SNELLVILLE, GEORGIA: A young mother and her three daughters tragically lost their lives after their mobile home burst into flames. Isabela Martinez and her daughters, Alexa, 6, Ashley, 4, and 1-year-old Daniela were trapped inside a burning trailer, with flames shooting through the roof of the home, The Sun reported.
Fire crews responded to reports of a fire off Smokecreek Parkway SW in Snellville, about 40 minutes east of Atlanta according to Gwinnett County Fire Department. Rescuers were able to enter a window and passed two of the young children to their colleagues outside. Gwinnett fire officials said bystanders had made several attempts to enter the home, but were blown back by the raging flames and thick smoke.
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The two children rescued were unconscious at the scene and received immediate medical attention, while firefighters continued to search the mobile home and found another child and their mother dead inside. Officials confirmed shortly after that it was too late to save the young family and that all four victims had died. "It’s very emotional, and when you have pediatric patients that are involved, your heart aches," Lt. Donald Strother with Gwinnett County Fire and Rescue told Fox 5 Atlanta.
The blaze is believed to have started at the back of the trailer, according to investigators. The children's father and grandfather are said to have identified the late mother and her young kids. It later emerged that Isabela had two other children who were not present when the fire broke out, according to WSB-TV. Yacmin Coria, a neighbor, recalled how she was asleep when a police officer allegedly knocked on her door. When she walked outside, she saw her neighbor's home in flames. "I feel terrible," Coria told Fox 5 Atlanta. "I didn’t want this to happen. You know life ends, [but] you don’t know when… It just can be taken away at any time."
Isabela was a wonderful, loving mother, Coria told WSB-TV. “She was a good mom. She always takes care of her daughters, do anything for her daughters[sic]," she told the outlet. “I have five boys and it hurts because you never know when it’s going to be your last day to be together as a family.”
The grieving family is being supported by friends, neighbors, and church leaders. Meanwhile, a GoFundMe page has been set up to help cover funeral costs. “We are asking for help to send my sister Maria Isabel and my 3 nieces Ashley, Alexa and Daniela to be laid to rest in Yanga, Veracruz Mexico," the fundraising page reads. "And so her other two children Brayan and Johana can be present at the funeral. They passed away February 6, 2021, due to a fire in their home.’
The young girls were “very nice kids” and liked to “hear stories about the Bible," family pastor Joaquin Contreras told WSB-TV. He said the children's father often attends his church and so he made sure he was there to pray with him in person through this tragedy. “He’s a good guy and we are here, you know all our church, to help him, pray for him,” Contreras told Fox 5 Atlanta. “Now is the time to be together.”
Gwinnett County fire Capt. Thomas Rutledge said that the cause of the fire in Snellville is still being investigated. “It’s a tragic incident for the community. It’s tragic for the family and certainly for our firefighters,” Rutledge told AP.