“But unfortunately there was heavy smoke and heat damage,” he said.

Nichols, who was not insured, was still trying to absorb the devastation inside as the firefighters finished up their work. She said her family will likely stay with relatives as they recover from the loss.

“I’ve had this (a fire) happen to me before when I was a kid,” she said tearfully.

“I just didn’t think I’d ever have to go through it again.”

E-mail Andrea VanValkenburg at:

avanvalkenburg@pressrepublican.com