BRISTOL, Va. – Debbie Lambert looked over a pile of charred floorboards that she had planned to use to finish out the bedroom of her Maple Avenue dream house.
“It would have been finished on Friday,” Lambert said Tuesday from the house where she’s spent the past three months remodeling to look like a log cabin on the inside.
“Would have been” appears now to be “never will be” after a Tuesday fire destroyed the home in under an hour.
Bristol Virginia Fire Capt. Mark Garrett said Lambert’s 1,500-square-foot home was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived around 11:45 a.m. and that no one was home.
Fire officials are still trying to figure out what caused the blaze, which melted the home’s exterior siding, blew out its windows and severely damaged its roof.
City officials condemned the building just before 3 p.m. It was surrounded by police tape when Lambert stopped by to inspect the damage two hours later.
“It was a dream come true, and now it’s just gone,” she said, choking back tears. “It’s hard to believe this can happen to you.”
Lambert said she’s wanted to live in a log cabin since winter. Originally, she planned to build on land she owned in Abingdon, but decided to remodel the Maple Avenue home when those plans fell through.
Lambert wasn’t sure exactly how much money she’s put into the project. She sold her home in Saltville, Va., and just moved into the new one over the weekend. She and a friend were out shopping for two-by-fours when the fire started.
Lambert, a single mother, and her son, who has cerebral palsy, are now homeless, but are being helped by the American Red Cross, which put them up in a local motel.
Those interested in helping the family can call the agency’s Bristol, Va., office at (276) 645-6650.
gmclean@bristolnews.com | (276) 645-2518
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