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Omaha woman kills house fire, sisters have questions

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An Omaha woman’s sisters want to know why she couldn’t escape the flames that took her life. Roxanne Joseph, 56, died Monday when her apartment caught fire near 49th and Ames Avenue. This is near Fontenelle Park. Around 11 p.m., flames erupted from Joseph’s apartment, trapping her behind a wall of fire. Her sister Rosetta Tobias feels sick at the thought of it. “I just pray to God that she died of smoke inhalation before the fire even had a chance to touch her body. I don’t even want to imagine that she was still alive.” “I feel fire burning her flesh,” Tobias said. Her other sister, Carmen, said they didn’t even know Roxanne had died until the KETV report Tuesday night. “The opportunity to come here and see what happened to my sister,” Joseph said. READ MORE: Family identifies 56-year-old woman killed in Omaha house fire. When they arrived here, a neighbor told them a man had used a bicycle to break the glass and try to save Roxanne’s life while she screamed for help. “And they couldn’t even get in to grab her. But they tried and we want to thank them for trying to get her out,” Tobias said. Carmen says since the fire, no one has called to tell them what happened to Roxanne. “I still do not understand. I am their emergency contact and I still haven’t been contacted. I was the one who came forward,” Joseph said. The trauma for this family continues to pile up. Newswatch 7 spoke with fire victim Roxanne in 2015. Her son was murdered this year. “I feel for the other parents, the other parents who went through what I went through, because I never expected that I would go through something so terrible. “News about my son,” Roxanne Joseph said in 2015. Today, her son’s ashes still lie in her apartment, buried amid the destruction. Roxanne’s sisters feel stuck and ask themselves, “What caused it, why did it start, how did it start?” Tobias said. The flames took the life of the woman they loved. “Roxanne was a beautiful soul. She would actually give you the shirt off your back,” Carmen Joseph said. “And I said, here I am, trying to call my sister, and she’s not answering and she’s never answering again,” Tobias said. The sisters say Roxanne was able to walk around the house under her own power. The Omaha Fire Department’s investigation continues. Click here for the latest headlines from KETV NewsWatch 7

OMAHA, Neb. –

An Omaha woman’s sisters want to know why she couldn’t escape the flames that took her life.

Roxanne Joseph, 56, died Monday when her apartment caught fire near 49th and Ames Avenue. This is near Fontenelle Park.

Around 11 p.m., flames erupted from Joseph’s apartment, trapping her behind a wall of fire. Her sister Rosetta Tobias feels sick at the thought.

“I just pray to God that she died of smoke inhalation before the fire even had a chance to touch her body. I don’t even want to imagine her still being alive and feeling the fire burning her flesh like that,” Tobias said.

Her other sister, Carmen, says they didn’t even know Roxanne had died until KETV’s report Tuesday night.

“And so I really want to thank you for the broadcast. Because that gave me the opportunity to come here and see what happened to my sister,” Joseph said.

READ MORE: Family identifies 56-year-old woman killed in Omaha house fire

When they arrived, a neighbor told them a man on a bicycle broke the glass and tried to save Roxanne’s life while she screamed for help.

“And they couldn’t even get in and try to grab her. But they tried and we want to thank them for trying to get her out,” Tobias said.

Carmen says no one has called to tell them what happened to Roxanne since the fire.

“I still do not understand. I am their emergency contact and I still haven’t been contacted. I was the one who came forward,” Joseph said.

The trauma for this family continues to pile up. Newswatch 7 spoke with fire victim Roxanne in 2015. Her son was murdered this year.

“I feel for the other parents who have gone through what I’m going through, because I never expected that I would go through this terrible news about my son,” Roxanne Joseph said in 2015.

Her son’s ashes still lie in her apartment today, buried amid the destruction. Roxanne’s sisters feel stuck and wonder how this happened.

“What is the cause, why did it start, how did it start?” Tobias said.

The flames claimed the life of the woman they loved.

“Roxanne was a beautiful soul. She would actually take your shirt off,” Carmen Joseph said.

“And I said, I’m sitting here trying to call my sister and she’s not answering and she’s never going to answer again,” Tobias said.

The sisters say Roxanne was able to walk around the house under her own power. The Omaha Fire Department’s investigation is ongoing.

Click here for the latest headlines from KETV NewsWatch 7

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