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Neighbors Raising Money For Denver Family Devastated By Fire

By Melissa Garcia

DENVER, Colo. (CBS4) – Neighbors are coming together to help a family devastated by a raging house fire.

Fire broke out Friday afternoon at the house on Sumac Avenue in Southwest Denver, near Wadsworth and Bowles.

Copter4 flew over the scene as crews doused the flames.

According to witnesses, several residents were inside the home when the fire broke out.

Neighbors said the residence is home to a three-generation family, including a man in his 70s who is blind.

Little more than a frame remains of the charred house.

W Sumac House 2 (mgarcia)
(credit: CBS4)

"We just saw all of these flames going all the way up the house," said Aly Cody, a next door neighbor. She and her family bolted out the door and watched the black smoke billow from about a block away.

"We could hear and see all of the windows breaking and popping out of the house," Cody told CBS4's Melissa Garcia.

"The fire, within minutes had engulfed the entire back half of the house," said Eric Edwards, who lives next door on the other side of the burnt home.

He worried that flames could spread to his house. "I was panicked. It was frightening how quickly (the fire) was spreading," Edwards said.

Edwards said that the family had been cooking on the back deck with an outdoor burner and a small propane tank.

"As I went to go back into my house, I heard a metallic popping sound. That seemed to be the event that caused the beginning of the fire shortly after that. I heard the yelling and started smelling smoke," Edwards said.

Luckily, everyone inside made it out safely, but the loss is great.

fire
(credit: CBS)

"This is total devastation. There doesn't appear to be any way that they could even consider rebuilding this place," said Clint Holden, who used to live in the area.

A sign on the fence out front shows how neighbors are coming together raise money for the displaced family.

"It's pretty cool just knowing that folks care this much about neighbors, neighborhoods," Holden said.

Neighbors have set up a go-fund-me page to help the family rebuild their lives.

https://www.gofundme.com/grant-ranch-house-fire

Denver Fire Department officials said the cause was still under investigation.

Melissa Garcia has been reporting for CBS4 News since March 2014. Find her bio here, follow her on Twitter @MelissaGarciaTV, or send your story idea to mkgarcia@cbs.com.

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