Sunday, August 17, 2008

This Time It Will Be Fire

I can't help but get spiritual in these type situations. I'm just keeping it real. Thank goodness I have a blog. I can say what's on my mind. In every situation, hard as it may be, there is a lesson to be learned. There were ten people living in less than 600 sq. ft. of space. Pardon me, but that's against the law. Since we spend a lot of time talking about unwed pregnancy, and the effects it has on our community. Why hasn't it come up concerning this tradgedy? Could it be that the most vocal proponents want to exploit it for all it's worth? That's why no one has said anything yet. Seven people have died, and all were uninsured. Sadly this is a prime example of the effects of a wayward life. Six children have died and I have yet to see one father.

A whole family lost their life that night. And one of the family members has since moved back in the front apartment of the triplex. I wonder how long they have lived at that address? Killed in the house fire at 862 Baltimore St. were Melissa Poole, 38; her children, Deon Poole, 18, Diamond Poole, 9, Dajanique Poole, 7, and D'Shun Poole, 5; niece, Arianna Poole, 4, and nephew Rodney Poole, 1.
"We need all the help we can get," said an exhausted Deon Shields, brother of Melissa Poole.
Darius Poole, 16, and DeAndra Poole, 11, suffered second-degree burns to their faces and hands.

The family has shown up and suddenly went to work. They are manning the post around the clock with buckets collecting money. The media is trying to portray this family as devout Christians who attended church services regularly. The truth of the matter is the children only went to bible study to eat. The mother probably didn't even go at all. She even missed little D'Shun's baptism. The church served pizza on Thursday nights. This isn't the end for all who are reading this, but it is for some of them. Thank goodness God watches over fools and babies. Just remember " this time it will be fire."

http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2008/aug/18/communitys-sorrow/

11 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Last I heard they had only collected $4000 towards the burials.

10:55 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Orange Mound fire: Asleep next door, sisters awoke to hear girl screaming, but it was too late
By Michael Lollar (Contact), Memphis Commercial Appeal
Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Sisters Danielle and Deneshia Poole had gone next door to watch a video, "Meet The Browns," with neighbors. They fell asleep but were awakened by pounding on a window.

"Then we heard screaming -- a girl's voice. I ran out the door, and my little sister was behind me," said Danielle, 20.


Deneshia "Ne-Ne" Poole, 12, peers out a neighbor's door Tuesday afternoon next to 862 Baltimore, where a deadly fire Saturday killed seven members of her family and injured three others. She and her older sister, Danielle, weren't home when the fire started.

Family, friends and curious neighbors bond in prayer Tuesday afternoon outside the burned apartment.

Mayor Willie Herenton greets Stanley Crawford on Tuesday afternoon outside 862 Baltimore. The mayor had stopped at the scene to see how he could help the grieving family members and neighbors.


The pain is still there, but people are reaching out to help fire victims in Orange Mound

Danielle ran only a few steps toward her home. Her family lived upstairs at the rear of the triplex. It was in that one-bedroom apartment at 862 Baltimore where flames leaped from the roof in the predawn hours Saturday and smoke billowed through the Orange Mound neighborhood.

Her uncle, Stanley Crawford, lived in a first-floor apartment in the triplex. His barking dog woke him.

"I thought somebody was messing with my car. When I jumped up, I inhaled smoke," he said.

The third apartment in the triplex, next door to Crawford's, was vacant. When he stumbled into the yard, he saw his nieces running from the neighbors' home. He grabbed Danielle.

"It's too late," he said, holding her to keep her from running into the house. One of her brothers, Deon, 18, had already dashed into the house to try to save the family. He didn't come out.

The sisters stood in the yard again Tuesday, briefly reliving the most horrific night of their lives. They have remained with the neighbors until they decide where to live. Their mother and most of their immediate family -- seven in all -- died in the fire.

Deneshia, 12, said she stood in the yard the night of the fire, feeling helpless.

"I was screaming my mother's name," she said, when two of her brothers appeared amid the smoke and flames.

One, D'Andre, 16, crashed through a window from the second floor. He had second-degree burns and cuts on his head and hands from broken glass. The other, Darius, 11, had second-degree burns.

They were still hospitalized Tuesday as their home drew a steady stream of traffic. Like the scene of the Lester Street murders in March, tragedy and death were like a magnet.

Some stopped to leave stuffed animals as part of a growing mound on the front porch. Some stuffed small bills into the hands of relatives who sat on the porch, in lawn chairs and on car hoods.

Mayor Willie Herenton arrived, promising to look into a long delay in turning remains over to the family for a burial. Shelby County Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Karen E. Chancellor ruled Tuesday that all seven deaths were caused by "smoke inhalation and thermal (burn) injuries." She said DNA testing could take about eight weeks to positively identify each victim.

Although family members have speculated that the blaze was sparked by an electrical short, fire officials said Monday that the damage was too extensive to determine a cause.

For the neighborhood, the aftermath of the fire was like a wake. Food arrived. Tubs of ice held soft drinks. A card table was set up in the front yard and friends played spades.

Angela Talley, a friend of the Poole family, sat on a car. She has lived in the neighborhood since she was a child.

Some of the houses, like the burned triplex, are more than 50 years old.

"Some of the people in the neighborhood have the homes that their grandparents or their parents owned," Talley said. "A lot of people can't afford them anymore because of taxes. Some have gotten into trouble because of drugs and prostitution. Some of their houses have been taken over by what I would call slumlords. Carpets are ragged. Paint is peeling. Wires stick out everywhere."

Wayne Parks lives on Hanley in the same neighborhood.

"This is the ghetto. The slumlords don't care about you as long as you pay them a chunk of money every month. You can tell the ones that are rented. They're the ones that are run-down."

Danielle, who works part-time at the FedEx Hub, said her family had programmed their landlord into their cell phones because they had to call so often.

"All the sockets kept going out," she said. "In the kitchen, if you plugged the microwave and the refrigerator in at the same time, the power went out."

Landlord Frank Holland said Tuesday the last time he heard from the Poole family was about six months ago when "I sent a man out and he put in a circuit breaker. That's the last I heard. ...

"I'm sorry it happened. I feel like I'm being crucified. Hell, I may have to leave town."

Holland said he thought the Poole family was living in the downstairs apartment next door to Crawford and that the upstairs apartment was vacant.

Crawford, who said he has had problems with wiring in his apartment, said Melissa Poole, her six children, a niece and a nephew all lived in the one-bedroom apartment.

"They slept on a king-size bed and on a sofa bed in the living room. It was just one big family."

Victims' fund

Greater Hope Baptist Church has established a fund to help pay for funeral expenses for the Poole family. Donations can be made at Regions Bank branches.

11:30 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Were the bodies burned beyond recognition?

7:05 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Services Saturday for 7 fire victims
New flames break out Wednesday at fatal site
By Jody Callahan (Contact), Memphis Commercial Appeal
Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Joint funeral services for the seven victims of the tragic fire in Orange Mound will be at noon Saturday at Melrose High, 2870 Deadrick.

Although the bodies of the victims will still be at the Shelby County Medical Examiner's Office pending positive identification, the funeral will continue, said Joe Ford, whose N.J. Ford and Sons funeral home is handling the services.

In addition, there will be a memorial service at 3 p.m. Friday at Greater Hope Baptist Church, 2960 Spottswood. Visitation at the church will be from 1 to 3 p.m. and 4 to 6 p.m.

The fire at 862 Baltimore began early Saturday, killing Melissa Poole, 38; her children, Deon Poole, 18, Diamond Poole, 9, Dajanique Poole, 7, and D'Ashunn Poole, 5; niece, Adrianna Poole, 4, and nephew Rodney Poole, 1.

Eleven-year-old survivor D'Andre Poole, who suffered second-degree burns, was released from Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center Wednesday.

His brother, Darius Poole, 16, remained in fair condition at the Regional Medical Center at Memphis.

Also, another small fire broke out at the Baltimore home Wednesday morning, Memphis Fire Department officials said.

The call came in at 12:22 p.m., saying electrical wires were on fire. Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division crews also responded. This fire was considered minor, Fire Department officials said.

Family members said after the first fire that they suspected electrical problems sparked the blaze.

Calvin Crawford, brother of Melissa Poole, told The Commercial Appeal that some of the problems included "sockets being blown" and the "breaker box was automatically cutting off."

He also said an electrical fire struck the home about two years ago.

The home is owned by Charles Frank Holland, 81. Holland runs AAA Real Estate, a property management company in Frayser, and owns numerous homes across the county.

11:58 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Complaint about people scamming fire victims a misunderstanding, woman says
Originally published 10:15 a.m., August 22, 2008
Updated 10:15 a.m., August 22, 2008

A complaint about scam artists exploiting a tragic weekend fire for profit was all just a misunderstanding, a Memphis woman said today.

Gail Hardin, a member of Greater Hope Baptist Church, said she was part of a group holding signs that read “Please help the Poole family” and collecting donations at Lamar and Bellevue earlier this week.

She never told anyone she was a member of the family, she said. Instead, she said her group and the victims were all in the same church family at Greater Hope.

A relative of the family told The Commercial Appeal Thursday that she feared Hardin’s effort wasn’t legitimate since she didn’t recognize them as Poole family members.

Seven members of the family died in a fire on Baltimore in Orange Mound last Saturday.

Donations can be made to the Poole Family Fund at any Regions Bank branch.

12:54 PM  
Blogger Common said...

Thaddeus raised $5,552.00 towards 7 funerals and burial plots yesterday. That's good, but that's just a start. He has been talking about it like he has paid the bill in full. He is trying to turn this family's tragedy into a media blitz for his show.

The Poole account set up at Regions Bank was adequate to serve this family's needs. There are branches all over the city. Even right there in Orange Mound. Some money came from somewhere. If it hadn't, N.J.Ford wouldn't have proceeded.

5:28 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

first of all, you dont know anythng about this family and what goes on in their lives. how dare you say they only went to church to eat? did you attend church with them? and it wasnt 10 people living in the house with them, I satyed down the street from them and Melissa Poole was the kindest person I've ever met. So what a father wasnt around. That doesn't mean anything, you should keep your harsh comments to yourself. I'm pretty sure if you said this to their face and not over the internet, you'll think twice before every trashing this family like that. And if your so Christian-like, you wouldn't be calling ANYONE fool. I undestand you have your opion, but you know nothing about this family, only what you hear on the news and read in the newspaper. So get your facts right before you start playing the blame game. Send me a message if you have somehting to say. God Bless.

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