Family blames 'faulty wires' for house fire that killed mother and daughter

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A local family is blaming "faulty wires" for a house fire that claimed the lives of a mother and daughter in Grand Park on Friday.

Monte Bostic dropped to the ground in front of the burned home as he described trying to help his aunt and her mother get out of the house.

“I tried my best to help my people get out, even when the fire was thick,” Bostic said.

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Bostic injured his right arm in the attempt to help.

Cellphone video shows a massive fireball engulfing the home on Rickenbacker Street.

Neighbor Kelvin Allen also tried to help.

“I tried to go in,” said Allen. “It was too unbearable. It was like hell.”

There’s now a gaping hole in the roof and a gutted interior.

Betty Bostic, 74, was transported to UF Health Gainesville, where she died. Her 60-year-old daughter, Martha Hartley, died at the scene.

Hartley’s daughter, Quinette Daise, said her mother was disabled and in a wheelchair.

“She was a good hardworking woman, loved everybody helped anybody. She was real good-hearted,” Daise said.

Investigators have not determined the cause of the fire, but Daise blames an electrical failure.

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“Faulty wires -- that's what I heard so far. They have a wire problem. People were supposed to come and fix it,” Daise said.

Firefighters returned to the home Friday afternoon to douse debris that was still smoking.

There was a steady stream of family, friends and neighbors stopping by at the home Friday. Neighbors said they all grew up together and considered the victims to be family.

“It's just a devastating blow for the whole family,” said Cassandra Hartley Brown, Hartley’s stepdaughter.

Cox Media Group