St. Paul fire on Magnolia Ave: Woman died after protecting her daughter
A picture of Bonnie Lynn Pierce courtesy of her family. (Supplied)
ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - A woman died after going back inside a burning home and shielding her daughter from a house fire in St. Paul.
St. Paul fire turned fatal
What we know:
The St. Paul Fire Department held a press conference Saturday afternoon regarding a house fire that occurred on Aug. 22.
The fire broke out at a duplex on the 700 block of Magnolia Avenue, fire officials say. Firefighters entered the home and found heavy fire and thick, black smoke.
During their search of the home, a firefighter found a woman in a bedroom and as he lifted her, he found she was shielding a little girl underneath her.
The woman was later identified as Bonnie Lynn Pierce and the toddler she was shielding was her daughter. Both were rescued and taken to the hospital.
Pierce sadly died days later on Aug. 24 due to her injuries, authorities say. The toddler remains in critical condition in the hospital.
A GoFundMe organized by Pierce's family says she was in the home with two of her daughters, one was able to escape and Pierce herself was initially able to escape before she realized her younger daughter was still inside the home. Pierce then went back inside the home to find her daughter and was then found by firefighters.
The GoFundMe also says that the daughter she was shielding is expected to make a full recovery.
In the press conference Saturday, Pierce's family described her as a funny, vivacious and wacky woman who died a hero.
What we don't know:
Authorities have not said what caused the fire or if there were any other injuries.
Multiple St. Paul fires
The backstory:
The duplex fire was one of three structure fires St. Paul Fire-EMS crews responded to within about 90 minutes Saturday afternoon.
The first fire was reported around 2:30 p.m. at an apartment building on the 1800 block of Magnolia Avenue East. Firefighters extinguished the fire before it spread beyond the unit where it started. No injuries were reported, and officials said preliminary findings indicated unattended cooking may have contributed to the fire.
Just before 4 p.m., crews were called to a heavily involved house fire on the 100 block of Elizabeth Street East. No one was home at the time, but four dogs were reported unaccounted for.
The Source: A St. Paul Fire Department press conference, the Pierce Family GoFundMe and past FOX 9 reporting.