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After Bridgeport Home 'Gutted' Twice By Fire, Friends Hold Fundraiser

By Joe Ward | August 22, 2017 8:55am
 Miguel Martinez, center, and his parents stand their home after it went up in flames following an arson incident in July.
Miguel Martinez, center, and his parents stand their home after it went up in flames following an arson incident in July.
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Provided/Elio Rodriguez

BRIDGEPORT — Miguel Martinez was lucky when his Bridgeport home first caught fire. The back of his home needed to be replaced, but it could have been worse, he said.

But the second time was much more serious.

Now, the Bridgeport resident's friends and family are raising money after the home he shares with his parents was "gutted" by the suspicious fire that burned his house, totaled his garage and damaged two neighboring garages. A GoFundMe page seeks to raise $25,000 for the family, or one-tenth of the overall estimated cost.

His home caught fire as part of a string of garage fires in the neighborhood recently. At least five garages and one house were damaged in two separate incidents this summer in Bridgeport. Two men were arrested in connection to one of the incidents, while the fires on Martinez's street remain unsolved.

READ: Bridgeport Garage Fires Lead To 2 Arrests, Police Say

Martinez and his friend Elio Rodriguez were at the White Sox-Cubs game at Wrigley Field on July 24 when he got a call saying his home in the 3300 block of South May had caught fire. His parents, who live in the unit below, were able to escape.

Rodriguez left the game with his longtime friend and accompanied him back to Bridgeport. When they got there, their worst fears were confirmed.

"I tried to comfort him, tell him it would be just like the first time," Rodriguez said. "When I saw the firefighters up on the roof, in the house, I knew it was worst than the first time."

The damage was severe, Martinez said. It will likely set him back $250,000 for a home that has to be gutted, he said.

"It'll be cut back to the studs," he said. "It's up there as far as cost."

Rodriguez said he was devastated for his friend, especially because he had just had to deal with an earlier fire that damaged his home. In December, a garbage can fire on the block spread to his house but was extinguished.

That's part of the reason Rodriguez said he decided to start the fundraiser. He knew his friend and his family was resilient, but he knew they could use a little help, too.

"He's barely done moving on from the first time," Rodriguez said. "Everything you did goes literally up in smoke.

"Kudos to him for not giving up. He said, all right, let's do this," Rodriguez said.

To donate to the Martinez family fund, click here.