Mother, Two Young Sons Die in N.C. House Fire

Dec. 13--A single bouquet of flowers was tucked in the chain-link fence in front of the Cliffdale Road house Wednesday afternoon where, hours earlier, a mother and her two young sons died in a fire.

Fayetteville firefighters found Ashley Bullock, 25, and her two boys, 6-year-old Travon Bullock and 5-year-old Andrew Bullock, in a bedroom of the home at 8581 Cliffdale Road.

"It's a firefighter's worst nightmare," Battalion Chief Ron Lewis said.

A passer-by spotted flames at the back of the house and notified 911 at 2:23 a.m., Lewis said.

By the time firefighters from Station 15 on Cliffdale Road -- less than a quarter-mile away -- arrived, it was too late, Battalion Chief Robert Brinson said.

The back of the house was consumed in flames that burst through the roof of the home. It took 45 minutes for fighters to get the flames knocked down, Brinson said.

The fire started in the back of the house, Lewis said.

The victims were found in a bedroom, Brinson said.

Ashley Bullock was in bed, and the boys were lying on the floor, Brinson said.

The family's dog died in the fire, too, authorities said.

Juwann Bullock, 27, who works second shift at Smithfield Packing in Tar Heel, came home to find his family dead and the home gutted, Brinson said.

Nine firetrucks responded, Lewis said, and clogged Cliffdale Road, across from Millstream Road and the Cliffdale West neighborhood.

The inbound lanes of Cliffdale Road were closed early on, and one lane reopened by the time morning commuters had taken to the road.

The State Bureau of Investigation and Fayetteville police were at the home until early afternoon, trying to determine the cause of the fire, Lewis said.

The SBI was releasing no information Wednesday afternoon, spokeswoman Noelle Talley said.

This was the second fatal fire in Fayetteville within a week. On Dec. 7, Scott Wayne Sturzebecker, 53, died after his home at 1163 Derbyshire Road caught fire about 11:15 p.m. the night before. The cause of that fire is still under investigation.

The Bullock family was renting the home, owner Markus H. Zagaschtoko said Wednesday, and had been living there for about 1 1/2years. Zagaschtoko declined further comment.

Quiet, chilling scene

It was quiet after investigators left. Yellow crime-scene tape remained around the yard.

In the back of the house, in front of a pile of charred rubble, was a child's Playskool car, with black smudges around it.

Ashley Bullock's mother, Bessie Washington, answered the door to her home off Century Circle, fresh tears on her cheeks.

Washington, who has a 22-year military career, declined to speak with reporters.

Travon was a first-grader at E.E. Miller Elementary School, said Patricia Hollingsworth, a spokeswoman for Cumberland County schools.

Grief counselors were available Wednesday for students and staff, Hollingsworth said.

Tanya Locklear is the assistant director of the Sunshine House child care center across the street from the house.

Child care workers frequently saw Ashley Bullock and Travon waiting for the school bus in the mornings, she said.

"We saw the children playing outside the other day," Locklear said. "They were playing up in a tree, and their dad was outside."

The Red Cross is assisting the family. Victoria Raleigh, executive director with the Highlands Chapter, said the organization is providing clothing, food and shelter to the family.

"Our sincere condolences go out to the family and we will continue to support as needed in the coming days and weeks," Red Cross officials said in a news release.

Staff writer Nancy McCleary can be reached at [email protected] or 486-3568.

Copyright 2012 - The Fayetteville Observer, N.C.