A pot left on the stove sparked the fire at a Houston home day care that to this day burns the hearts of those who remember.
Four children died.
Their caretaker, Jessica Tata, is now in prison serving an 80-year sentence for leaving the stove on and the children unsupervised while she went shopping.
“When that dispatch dropped, it said - ‘Day care center on fire report, people trapped.’ So that seemed, I would say, that’s one of the ones that really bother you, and you’re hoping it’s not true when you get there,” Capt. Johnathan Robinson said. “We had to pass the children out of the window because we couldn’t go back the way we came because it was very hot and smoky, and the children didn’t have protective gear like we do.”
In this episode of ‘The Evidence Room,’ you’ll hear never-before-heard accounts from first responders who handled the case of Jessica Tata.
The day care operator responsible for the horrific fire that day, Jessica Tata, is now serving an 80-year sentence.
“You can’t unsee it,” said HFD Captain Michael Prigmore.
First responders on the scene talk about what it was like trying to save children from the fire. It’s a day, they say, that changed their lives forever.
You’ll see crime scene footage, showing the damage the fire caused.
Part of the case evidence shows a planning board with all of the day care’s daily activities like snacks, naps, and bible study time.
As they were working the scene, Tata showed up with shopping bags, unaware of what happened when she was gone.
Learn more about the case of Jessica Tata, and how these homicide cases impact first responders, in this week’s episode of “The Evidence Room.”
Get caught up on Season 2 of ‘The Evidence Room’ here.
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