By Claire Z. Cardona
The Dallas Morning News
FORNEY, Texas — The Forney home of a Dallas police officer and his family was destroyed on Christmas Eve when a fire tore through the brick structure.
Gerardo Guardiola and his family were eating dinner with 10 other guests when they noticed their outdoor fireplace was smoking, KXAS-TV (NBC5) reported.
The flames quickly took over their home in the 10,000 block of Wild Rose Circle. Everyone was able to get out and no injuries were reported.
The cause of the fire has not yet been released.
The Forney Fire Department told the station the house was a complete loss.
Guardiola, a 21-year veteran of the Police Department, told KTVT-TV (Channel 11) that his children spotted the smoke while they played on the trampoline in the backyard.
It took crews from the Forney, Crandall and Terrell fire departments to knock out the fire.
“All of it is gone. Everything is gone,” Guardiola told KTVT as he stood outside his home on Christmas. “It’s heart-breaking. I built this home in 2005. I moved in on Christmas Eve. I’ve been here since then.”
He said the family plans to rebuild.
The neighborhood and police community have rallied around the family to help with a place to stay and other essentials. Some also brought coffee for the firefighters.
“We’re all out here as a community, arm in arm, that’s what life is all about,” Luke Ragsdale, president of the homeowners association, told KTVT. “That’s what this season is all about: is family and your faith.”
The Assist the Officer Foundation is collecting donations, which should specify the money go toward Officer Gerardo Guardiola and family.
©2017 The Dallas Morning News