AUBURN (WGME) — An Auburn family spent New Year’s Eve cleaning up the side of their single story home after a grease fire.

“It happened in the blink of an eye,” said Karen White, the home renter.

White lives in the home with her fiancé, 17-month-old baby, and two pets. All made it out safe.

White says that she was cooking bacon on the stove and left to take care of her baby. When she returned to the kitchen, she says it was a nightmare.

“One second to take care of my 19-month old, and it was done,” she said.

White says she took the flaming pan outside and chucked it into the snow covered garbage can.

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“Not even thinking that if it hit all that trash the grease would start a fire,” She said.

Fire officials say the burning garbage quickly spread the fire, scorching the side of the house and melting the siding.

“Got to pull all this plywood off now. It’s burnt. I have to replace it,” said Pierce, Karen’s fiancé.

White says she’s happy the family is okay, but says this year hasn’t been easy on their small home.

“It’s only [Pierce] right now doing what he can to support our whole family, because disability takes a while in the state of Maine,” she said.

White was diagnosed with a rare heart condition after the birth of her baby in 2016, and was given just 6 months to live.

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“I basically became a 27-year-old woman trapped in an 80-year-old body,” she said.

Her next surgery is in less than a week, and she says the family needs all the help they can get.

“It’s a new year tomorrow, so maybe today, the 31st, we can put our whole year behind us, because it’s been so terrible for us, and I’m just hoping next year is something we can be happy for, and good things will come,” she said.

A GoFundMe is set up to help the family. You can check it out here: https://www.gofundme.com/kpsmp-please-help-my-small-family


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