PLEASANT GROVE, Utah — A man in a wheelchair was killed and his elderly mother died hours later after a Pleasant Grove house fire sparked in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
Firefighters responded to the blaze in the neighborhood of 600 East and 100 North shortly before 2 a.m.
When crews arrived, they were able to quickly extinguish the flames, explained Pleasant Grove Fire Chief Andrew Engemann.
As crews began searching the home, they discovered 80-year-old Rosemary Pendley with serious injuries. Crews performed CPR and transported Pendley to the hospital where she later died of her injuries.
In the continuing search through the home, firefighters found 50-year-old Jesse Pendley, Rosemary's son, in a wheelchair, and after attempting life-saving measures, Jesse was pronounced dead at the scene.
Family pets were also found dead in the fire.
"They're both a little bit older, he had disabilities so they were trying to take care of each other for a little while," Engemann explained.
Neighbors said Jesse was the third child Rosemary lost this year, one from a car accident and another from lung cancer. They said that while Rosemary was a staple of the neighborhood, she had also struggled with lung cancer.
"We've organized fundraisers for her to install a sprinkler system when she was dragging her hose all over her huge property to water her lawn," said neighbor Jenny Crandell.
"I fixed the screen for her, mowed her lawn, just helped out when she needed something that she couldn't lift or do," added Kwin Walker.
Just last week, Walker says Rosemary gave him flowers and a note to both he and his wife, which mean even more now.
"Just said, 'To Kwin and Heidi ... thanks for all the help you do, love, Rosemary.'"
Neighbors are finding solace in knowing Rosemary is no longer in pain.
"We just feel really blessed that she was apart of our lives for so long and she's just been a really positive and strong person to be around." said Crandell.
An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the fire but Engemann said investigators believe it was some sort of electrical issue.
"They're no exactly sure what," he said. "There's a dryer there in the back of the house and a couple things so they're leaning in that direction but we're not 100% sure yet."
