Loved ones, friends and neighbors gathered for a vigil on Tuesday night, March 7, at a West Covina apartment complex, where a community mourned a grandmother and her two grandchildren who died in a fire there on Sunday.
The vigil – at the site of a growing, impromptu memorial in a courtyard at the Rollingwoods apartments in the 1900 block of East Amar Road — drew about 60 people.
As the memorial’s candles glowed in the crisp night air, they reflected, still processing what happened over the weekend while consoling each other.
Although the L.A. County Medical Examiner-Coroner had yet to officially identify any of the victims by early evening Tuesday, family friends, residents of the complex and media reports identified the victims as a grandmother, Georgina Yracheta, and her two grandchildren, 2-year-old Solomon and infant Luna Doughton.
A 9-1-1 caller reported the fire at the apartment complex at 12:54 a.m. on Sunday, according to Jim Rudroff, an assistant fire chief at the West Covina Fire Department. Fire officials continued to investigate the cause of the fire, though authorities said it was not suspicious in origin.
Blue, pink, and white balloons formed an arch behind their growing memorial on Tuesday, its floral arrangements, candles, stuffed toys, and angel statues still not detracting from a framed photo of the family amid the tributes.
Community members in West Covina and other areas have rallied to support Georgina’s son, Enrique Doughton, and his wife, Pamela — Solomon and Luna’s parents – mourning the loss of their mother, mother-in-law and children.
A local community advocate is collecting money and other donations for the family at his business, Ba Lan Fire Jewelry, 115 North Citrus Avenue, in Covina.
GoFundMe pages were created a day ago and have already raised thousands to help support the Doughton family.
One was created by the niece and Goddaughter of Georgina and has raised more than $26,000 as of 6 p.m. Tuesday –about $11,000 over the initial $15,000 goal.
Another was created by Oscar Ramirez, who works at Diamond Honda in City of Industry with Enrique, the son and father of the victims. The page has mainly been circulated around Ramirez’s employees and the car community that Enrique has worked with. The GoFundMe has raised about $53,000 as of 6 p.m. Tuesday.
“The community has really done what it does best, and brought support to the family,” said West Covina City Councilmember Brian Tabatabai. “We’re just all hoping we can help them however we can.”
Related links
Community rallies around West Covina family mourning loss of grandmother, 2 children in fire
2 children and woman killed in fire at West Covina apartment building
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.