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'I thank God for my life': Opelousas woman loses everything in house fire
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ST. LANDRY PARISH, La. (KLFY) -- An Opelousas woman and her son are left to pick up the pieces after their home erupted in flames Friday morning. According to the fire department, the fire began in the kitchen.
The family said they're left with nothing after three decades of building their lives there.
Bernadette Roberts began her Friday morning just like anybody else. She woke up, walked out of her front door and headed to work. She had no idea the next time she'd be here, she'd see her home up in flames.
She raced home from work, passing a stream of first responders surrounding her home.
"When I saw my house, I was just so upset and hurt. The firemen were trying to calm me down, saying, 'You know what, ma'am? You're going to be alright. We, as a community, we come together. We stand together,'" she said.
"So, just hearing that, it was just a confirmation that God was just telling me it was going to be alright," she continued.
A spiritual woman, Roberts said it was God who woke her up early that morning and got her out of the house.
"The Holy Spirit is a gift, and he quickened my body this morning to get up and to prepare myself," she said.
Just a few hours later, that's when firefighters believe the fire began in the kitchen, possibly from the refrigerator, and smoke and flames spread through her home. While Roberts lost medicine, documents and material possessions, she's grateful.
"The policemen, the firemen, and I just want to thank the chief for coming out and just encouraging me. Because when one hurts, we all hurt. When the community comes together, it's very powerful. So I just thank God. I thank God for my life," she said.
Roberts' family has set up a GoFundMe to help her out with clothes, food and a temporary place to live with her son, who also lived at the home.