Child and pregnant woman among those killed

LAWRENCE COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) – A seven-year-old child, his father and a pregnant woman were among a family of three killed in a house fire in Lawrence County on Thursday.

“They were wonderful people and I want everyone to know that,” exclaimed Sharon Cassidy.

The family was surrounded by burned remains. It is a loss that is difficult to understand.

“It tore my family apart,” Cassidy said.

Just minutes before the Morgan Road home went up in flames Thursday morning, Cassidy spoke with her nephew, Travis Wissner.

“He was just a hard-working, good person,” Cassidy explained.

First responders found Wissner in the bedroom of his home with his fiancée and seven-year-old son Jackson.

“Jackson was a ray of sunshine and he was just getting started,” Cassidy’s voice cracked.

According to Cassidy, Travis’ fiancée, 18-year-old Paige Brown, was expecting in August.

“So my guess is that I lost four people in that fire, not three,” Cassidy explained.

It was a horrific scene that Cassidy’s son Cody saw from his front door.

“My grandparents basically raised us almost like siblings. I grew up here in this house; I grew up with my cousin,” Cody explained.

Cody, a volunteer firefighter, rushed to his cousin’s house even though he knew his loved ones were trapped inside. He broke windows and did everything he could to save her, assisted by teams from more than half a dozen departments.

“Whenever you see it’s a family member and you immediately feel fear because you know they’re in danger, it’s very difficult to think about anything,” he said.

As neighbors, it’s a scene the family has to relive over and over again.

“It’s very hard,” Cody burst into tears.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is investigating the cause of the fire and whether severe weather played a role.