Christmas Eve Fire Leaves Anadarko Family Homeless For The Holidays

Patty Chasenah and her family were all huddled in their living room Sunday night celebrating Christmas Eve.

Suddenly around 9:30, neighbors pounded on their door

“I looked out the window, and saw orange flame when I went into my daughters room,” Chasenah says.

Flames from the attic were shooting into the sky, and the family was completely unaware. Family who lives close by saw an orange glow coming from Kentucky Avenue and rushed to help.

“I glanced back that way and all I saw were flames in the sky. I dropped everything I had and took off running over there,” says Patty’s Mother-In-Law Chili Ybarra Hainta.

Chasenah and her family of 7 will spend the next few days in this motel room with help from the Apache tribe. No one was hurt during the fire but, they had to leave 3 dogs behind.

Today, smell of smoke still hangs in the air, their yard is covered in ash, and shingles are still hanging in the trees.

“The fire chief said it was electrical and that's what started it,” Chasenah says.

The home was a rent to own property and as a gift to the family, the landlord recently waived the remaining payments on the house. It’s been deemed a total loss and family says they didn't have insurance yet.

Through chaos, they still managed to celebrate Christmas from their new cozy quarters.

“My kids got to have all their present, so they didn't miss out on that thank God,” Chasenah says.

They say it's all thanks to neighbors, firefighters and police officers who faced freezing conditions as the fought away flames.

“Just want you to know that angles don't come from heaven, they are here on earth also. We have been blessed,” says Ybarra Hainta.

There is a GoFundMe account to help the family.

Family says Anadarko Schools as well as First United Methodist Church, located on Oklahoma Avenue in town, are also taking donations to help them get back on their feet.