‘There goes my house’: Woman loses home in fire on Southeast Side

Woman walks KSAT reporter through home after losing everything

“There goes my house,” Christine Cervantes said as she watched flames consume the home that she purchased 21 years ago.

The San Antonio Fire Department says the home is destroyed.

The fire broke out at 3 a.m. Thursday in the 400 block of Schenck Avenue on the Southeast Side.

When crews arrived, her home was already being devoured by flames, which had spread to the property next door.

Neighbors help woman escape house fire; home deemed a total loss

Firefighters were able to extinguish the fire in the attic of her next-door neighbor’s home and save it, but that wasn’t the case for Cervantes’ home.

“I’ve lost everything,” she said as she walked KSAT 12 through her home.

She and family members were trying to see what they could save, but nothing much was left after the flames.

“My clothes, my car, everything is gone,” she said. “This is where my grandfather's table was.”

Cervantes said the biggest blow was losing the heirlooms her grandfather left behind for her. Cervantes’ mother was at the property to comfort her.

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She is thankful for her neighbors who she says helped get her and her dog to safety.

“I was stuck in the backyard and my neighbor just grabbed me over the fence,” Cervantes said.

She said she had just got a job after looking for one for several weeks. She was supposed to start this week, but then she woke up to losing her home.

Despite the loss, she says she is remaining optimistic.

“But thank the Lord that I’m OK.”


About the Authors:

Sarah Acosta is a weekend Good Morning San Antonio anchor and a general assignments reporter at KSAT12. She joined the news team in April 2018 as a morning reporter for GMSA and is a native South Texan.

Azian Bermea is a photojournalist at KSAT.