HENRICO COUNTY, Va. — A Henrico family is forced to start over after an accidental house fire destroyed their Glen Allen home this week and killed their two dogs.
Amy Fultz was five minutes away from her home Wednesday night when a neighbor called to say the house was on fire. Fultz and her family were not home, but their two dogs, Hazel and Nelly, were inside.
Fultz tried to get inside as neighbors rushed to help, calling 911 and attempting to save the pets. Both dogs died in the fire.
"They're the sweetest animals, and that's all she kept mentioning, not the stuff, not the things. It was my dogs," said Bonnie Moreno, Fultz's sister.
Henrico firefighters ruled the cause of the fire accidental. The family believes it may have started with a faulty ice maker.
The home, purchased in 2019, was meant to be their forever home. Now, the family is staying with relatives and trying to process their next steps. Moreno said even the smallest but most meaningful pieces of her sister's life were taken, including her wedding ring, which is now lost somewhere in the ashes.
"Those are sentimental things that you can't really just replace," Moreno said.
John Bowman, Fultz's brother, went through the few belongings that survived the fire, including a picture of his nephew.
"This is all the salvagable stuff that we've gotten out the home so far for my sister, her husband and her kids. It's not really that much," Bowman said. "A lot of family photos, they weren't touched and were able to be cherished and saved."
Support is pouring in for the family. A GoFundMe has raised over $50,000, and a community donation drive is planned for Saturday.
"The support that we've received from the community, from friends, from family, has been what is getting us through," Moreno said. "Words cannot express the gratitude that we feel."
Despite the heartbreak, the family is remaining resilient and holding onto perspective.
"No this is just the beginning. This is the beginning of new things. Bigger and better things. Things happen for a reason, God has a plan and they'll make it through," Bowman said.
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