ESCONDIDO (KGTV) - The second of two children killed in a mobile home fire that may have been sparked by a Christmas tree last Thursday was publicly named Monday.
The San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office reported that it was Ellizette Orozco, 5, and her uncle, Diego Flores Vidal, 11, who died of injuries from the pre-dawn fire on Thursday.
The fire at the Greencrest Mobilehome Park in the 500 block of West 15th Avenue was reported shortly after 12:30 a.m., according to Escondido police. It took more than 40 firefighters from Escondido, San Marcos and Vista about 35 minutes to put out.
Orozco was pronounced dead at the scene of the fire, while Flores Vidal died Friday at a hospital, the Medical Examiner said.
Four other children and three adults were hospitalized for smoke inhalation and were expected to make full recoveries. The home was destroyed.
The adults made several trips in an attempt to remove all the children from the home, however Flores Vidal and Orozco were unaccounted for when first responders arrived, according to the Medical Examiner.
Flores Vidal was transported to Palomar Medical Center and then UCSD Medical Center, where his condition continued to decline.
"If you wanted the definition of someone who was going to give you the shirt off their back that family is the one," said neighbor and friend Miles Garvey. "They would do anything for you."
Garvey said he woke up to the smell of smoke, and when he came outside, he saw the mobile home on fire and his friend Sandra screaming that her daughter and her brother were still inside.
"I was about to break down because it hits close to home, too," he said. "I have kids and I can't imagine what was going through her head."
Miles described Sandra Flores as a great mother who is always there for her kids. He said Flores' five-year-old daughter Ellizette was smart, funny and excelling in school.
"She just kind of like honor roll for elementary, he said. "She's getting awards."
Fire officials say the cause of the fire was likely electrical problem or from candles, and it appeared to have started near a Christmas tree.
"It's kind of hard to tell at this point with the extent of the damage what occurred first, but those are kind of what we're looking at," said Escondido Fire Chief Russ Knowles. "Even though the tree was not the cause of the fire it contributed to the spread of the fire."
Garvey started a GoFundMe account to help raise money and get the family back on their feet.
"I know you can't replace a life, but I just wanted to try and help them get a place to stay, clothes, anything helps," he said.
Almost $55,000 had been donated to the family's GoFundMe.com page as of midday Monday, surpassing the $50,000 goal.
Information from City News Service was used in this report.
