June 25--WASHINGTON -- Puddles of water sat Monday on the charred fringes of a yard where a family home was engulfed in flames the day before. A lone chimney stood amid piles of remains -- a 1970s-era pickup was burnt black inside, springs from a pair of mattresses were a mix of rust and rot, and pieces of paper with blackened edges were being blown around the yard by hot gusts of wind.
Jesse Scott looks at the home on Brown College Lane and sees memories turned to ashes.
"Back in the day, we had some really good times here," said Scott, walking amid the remnants of his grandfather's home.
The family's estate was estimated to be around a century old, and sits only a few miles from the birthplace of Texas. Decades prior to the fire, the house had a stable behind it where a young Scott would go to feed his grandfather's horses. His cousin Jeanette was about 8 or 9 years old when she first started driving around the dirt roads that surrounded the homes. He cracks a smile that fades quickly as Scott's thoughts return to the present, where his cousin is no longer alive to share those memories.
Officials with the Washington County Sheriff's Department and the State Fire Marshal's Office are investigating the cause of the blaze that killed two people and left one man in critical condition.
"It was a pretty intense fire," said Jay Petrash, chief deputy with the Washington County Sheriff's Office.
The bodies of Jeanette Laster, 53, and David Wright, 50, were found after firefighters from Washington and Chappell Hill fought for two hours to extinguish the fire. A third resident, Jasper Broaden, 60, was flown to Memorial Hermann Texas Trauma Institute in Houston. Broaden was in critical condition Monday evening, according to hospital officials.
Scott said he woke up around 2 a.m. Sunday because he heard a popping noise that he thought was coming from his kitchen.
"I saw a glow and knew something wasn't right," he said, "So, I went outside and saw the house [next door] was on fire."
Scott woke his mother, Johnnie Mae, and sister, Carla, who called 9-1-1.
"If you went in that [house], there ain't no way you were comin' out," Carla Scott said.
Jesse Scott said that he felt paralyzed by fear.
"I couldn't go over there. [The house] was covered in flames. I was scared to go on the property," he said.
It took first responders about 30 minutes to arrive at the rural home, Carla Scott said.
Dispatchers warned officers and firefighters that rounds of ammunition were exploding, according to the incident report. There was also concern about a propane tank in the house and the water heater exploding.
The first call to Washington County dispatchers was received at 2:49 a.m., the report states. A half-hour later, a dispatcher said the "house is pretty much on the ground and a truck is on fire in front of it."
According to witnesses, Broaden was pulled out of the house by David Wright, who went back in an effort to save Laster. Petrash said that report has not been confirmed.
Scott described Wright and Laster's relationship as a common-law marriage. Laster had lived in the home for more than 20 years.
Broaden, who was Laster's cousin and had only lived at the home for about six months, was burned severely on his back and his arms.
Funeral arrangements for Laster and Wright are pending with Hogan Funeral Home.
Copyright 2013 - The Eagle, Bryan, Texas
