JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Tracy Potter has been in the same house in the Fort Caroline area for more than 30 years. But last Saturday, he watched as many of those memories were burned away in a matter of minutes.
Potter said he, his fiancée Emelie, his 9-year-old son, Weston, and his 6-year-old daughter, Luna, were heading home from a flag football practice that day when his 21-year-old son, who was at home with his 19-year-old son, called in a panic.
“He said, ‘Dad, the house is on fire.’ And, you know, he’s usually pretty calm and collected. But I could hear in his voice that it wasn’t good. So we raced home,” said Potter.
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Potter told us he and his family could see the cloud of smoke coming from their home while they were driving back. By the time they pulled up, he said the house was in flames, the Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department was already responding, and there was nothing he could do.
“We were kind of able to see the devastation, which was, you know, pretty bad,” Potter said.
The fire started after a candle was left burning on the back porch, which Potter said was discovered by one of his sons who was still at home when it happened.
Potter bought the house from his mother after she moved out of the country. He said his mother had bought the house when she and his father were separated, and he was raised there. Potter has since raised his four kids there, but his youngest two kids may not get to finish their childhood years inside the house.
“It’s just 30 years of memories. You know, me growing up, my older boys growing up, and then them, you know, starting to grow up here,” Potter said, “That’s tough, you know, just going inside and seeing the way that it is now, in comparison to what it’s been like for the last 30 or something years.”
The Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department has already reported more than 30 house fires this year. JFRD reported 510 house fires in 2025, 61 more than the number reported in 2024. Almost two dozen of last year’s reported house fires were in or near the Fort Caroline area.
Action News Jax requested a month-by-month breakdown of last year’s reported house fires through JFRD, including the reasons they were caused. We’re still waiting to receive those records.
Potter and his family are in a hotel for now, but they said they’re committed to standing strong as a family despite what they lost to the flames.
“We went from, you know, an almost 2000 square foot house, and we’re now in a 200 square foot bedroom, but we’re just still thankful we have each other,” said Potter.
If you would like to support the Potter family during this time, you can do so by clicking the link here.
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