Family members identified in fatal Montgomery County house fire

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Texas -- A resident on Long Valley Court in the Summerset Estates community called Montgomery County 911 just before 2:30 AM Saturday morning, reporting that the house across the street was on fire and that as many as 8 family members were possibly trapped in the home.

Family members have identified the deceased and MCFMO Investigators are working with the Montgomery County Forensic Center to confirm their causes of death. Initial autopsy results indicate that all three suffered smoke inhalation.

• Raquel Figueroa (92 y/o) Deceased
• Marco Zarate Jr (6 y/o)Deceased
• Vannessa Zarate (1 y/o) Deceased
• Marco Zarate (27 y/o) Survivor – Burns, lacerations, smoke inhalation
• Amanda Zarate (30 y/o)Survivor – smoke inhalation, burns, Still hospitalized at Memorial Herman Burn Unit
• Daniel “Danny” Figueroa (7 y/o) Survivor – smoke inhalation
• Julian Zarate (5 y/o) Survivor – smoke inhalation

The first crew of Firefighters and their Battalion Chief from the nearby Caney Creek Fire Station arrived within minutes to find the family’s father and neighbors desparately trying to reach several members of the Zarate family who were trapped by the heavy smoke and fire conditions in the home.

The fire originated on top of the kitchen stove and spread to the cabinets and attic above the stove, while hot toxic smoke began to fill the home, blocking the family’s primary escape route, a hallway which led from the bedrooms where their four children were sleeping. Two of the Zarate children, boys age 5 and 7, were able to make their way into the hallway but could not make it to the front door due to the smoke and flames.

A neighbor entered the home through the front door and crawled into the hallway at great personal risk and found the boys, leading them to safety. As he was bringing the boys out of the home, Caney Creek Firefighters arrived and joined the search, locating the mother and the other two missing children. The children’s mother suffered severe smoke inhalation but was pulled from the home and immediately treated by MCHD-EMS, then transported to Memorial Hermann Hospital – The Woodlands. She was stabilized there by Hospital staff, then airlifted to the Houston Medical Center by Lifeflight helicopter.

The crew of Caney Creek Firefighters continued on into the home despite extreme fire conditions, and were able to locate both of the other Zarate children in their bedrooms, again bringing them outside to MCHD-EMS crews on scene.