"It's just one of those senseless acts you don't expect to happen in your family," her husband said.
Tragedy struck a home in Florida when a backyard fire pit accident took the life of a mother of five. 38-year-old Nicole Foltz was spending time with family and friends by an outside fire on November 14. The incident took place when the fire fizzled out and Nicole tried to reignite it. "I had just gone inside and to my knowledge, she decided to try to keep the fire going, keep the fun going," her husband, Jeff Foltz told FOX 13. "And she put another log on it and there wasn’t much flame at all. But, she just, I guess felt to pour a little gas on it, and it would reignite, and it did. I guess it must’ve traveled the gas stream up to the gas can, and it exploded in her hands," he explained.
A Tarpon Springs woman dies at Tampa General Hospital following a backyard fire pit accident at her home. https://t.co/SmyjbhOcIr
— ABC Action News (@abcactionnews) December 3, 2022
Nicole suffered nearly 100 percent burns on her body was rushed to the hospital and died at the hospital three days later. "It's just one of those senseless acts you don't expect to happen in your family," her husband told WFTS-TV. “Gasoline is not a joke when it comes to fire. You have to be careful or just don’t do it at all." The family is hoping people learn from this horrifying experience and practice fire safety. "I don't want to read about somebody else's family having to go through this. It's unimaginable," he said. The accident also severely injured the couple's 11-year-old son Jeffrey. "He's staying pretty strong," Jeff said, adding that just "two days after we got home he was walking." His son has second-degree burns to close to 40 percent of his body.
Mom of 5 Dies After Fire Pit Accident That Also Severely Injured Son, 11: 'It's Unimaginable,' Says Husband https://t.co/w2MdJAD4XQ
— People (@people) December 7, 2022
Nicole Foltz’s co-workers at Tarpon Tavern, where she was a manager and a server, are raising funds to help her family deal with this tragedy. "Her radiant smile always filled the room," the fundraiser states. She is remembered by her colleagues as being a "devoted wife" who was always there for everyone. "She absolutely loved her work where everybody adored her not just for her hard work, but also personality and friendship," Ania Bozena, the owner of Tarpon Tavern, where Nicole worked for many years said. "But most of all, she was a great mother who always put her family first," added Bozena. "We miss her terribly." The fire pit is being turned into a bird bath, which is something Nicole always wanted for their backyard, her husband shared.
Nicole Foltz, a mother of 5, died after a firepit accident in her family's backyard. Her son was also injured. The community is uniting around the Tarpon Springs family. Her coworkers at Tarpon Tavern started a fundraiser for them, and others are collecting donations too. pic.twitter.com/GKMTbHFAjx
— Kailey Tracy Fox 13 (@KaileyTracy) December 5, 2022
References:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-foltz-family
Cover Image Source: GoFundMe
