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Family's Christmas Now In Ashes

News Channel 8 photo by INDIRA LEVINE

Joe Wakefield examines the remains of his parent’s home after a fire Sunday morning.

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By JASON GEARY and JOSH POLTILOVE, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 24, 2007

TAMPA - Sifting through the scorched ruins of his parents' home, Joe Wakefield didn't know Sunday where his family would gather for Christmas.

For 13 years, the cozy Citrus Park home filled with furniture from Germany, his mother's antique clock collection and family gifts piled almost to the ceiling has been the Wakefield family's gathering venue for the holiday.

On Sunday morning, though, with Christmas only two days away, a fire destroyed his parents' home at 5825 Bitter Orange Ave.

"Everything is gone," said Wakefield, 34, walking though the remains of the home.

The house is owned by his parents, Joseph and Bonnie Wakefield, who have three children and six grandchildren.

Capt. Bruce Delk of Hillsborough County Fire Rescue said firefighters responded to a call at the residence at about 7 a.m. About eight firetrucks and 24 firefighters came to extinguish the blaze.

Although the fire remains under investigation, it appears to have begun near an artificial Christmas tree, Delk said.

When Joseph Wakefield went to plug in the Christmas tree, he told rescuers, it tripped the breaker. After resetting the breaker, he came back, and the tree was on fire.

His 16-year-old granddaughter, who was also staying in the home with a friend, managed to escape through a bedroom window after feeling that the doorknob was too hot to turn.

Joe Wakefield said his father was unable to bring the blaze under control with a hose.

"Everybody made it out OK ... Nobody was seriously hurt," said Joe Wakefield. "It could have been a lot worse."

Joseph, 61, and Bonnie Wakefield, 60, were treated for smoke inhalation at St. Joseph's Hospital and released.

They might stay with family members or at a hotel, said Joe Wakefield's wife, Nikki.

Meanwhile, the family has been wondering where Christmas will be celebrated.

"We do Christmas here every year," Nikki Wakefield said. "It's a production. It's an all-day event so everyone has all the Christmas presents here. Everything is gone."

On salvaging expeditions into the home, she spotted remnants of the gifts.

"It's hard," she said. "You see things that they would have been opening in a few days."

By Sunday afternoon, the artificial Christmas tree was a tangle of wires near the front door.

The house's scorched rafters were exposed, the walls were charred and a mushy, sooty paste covered the floor. It appeared that almost all of the family photographs were lost in the blaze.

A 55-inch, flat-screen television was an unrecognizable heap in the living room. In the backyard, the screened enclosure sagged into the swimming pool's murky black water.

The fire spared some silverware, jewelry and a novelty sign - "Nana's Kitchen ... where memories are made and grandkids are spoiled."

The family's 12-year-old cat was missing.

"Maybe she'll be back once the commotion settles down," Joe Wakefield said.

The value of the home is listed at more than $203,000, according to the Hillsborough County Property Appraiser's Web site.

He said his parents have insurance. "They like the neighborhood so they'll probably rebuild."

Joe Wakefield said most of the home's furniture - bought when his father was in the Army and the family lived in Germany - was destroyed. A grandfather clock and his mother's collection of antique clocks, some from the 1800s, also were reduced to debris.

Wakefield, who is studying to be a crime scene technician, worked for many years in his father's demolition business, Disaster Master. He's familiar with picking up the pieces left after fires.

"It's always hard when you do a burn job because you know somebody's house and life has been destroyed," he said. "I never thought it would happen to us."

Reporter Josh Poltilove can be reached at (813) 259-7691 or jpoltilove@tampatrib.com. Reporter Jason Geary can be reached at (813) 865-1505 or jgeary@tampatrib.com.

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