Pasco mother, son find new home after losing everything in Wesley Chapel apartment fire

WESLEY CHAPEL, Fla. - A Pasco County mother and son are housed again after losing everything from the Cobalt Apartment fire on Thursday afternoon.

Wesley Chapel apartment recovery

The backstory:

Pasco County Fire Rescue said the fire was caused by a lightning strike.

PREVIOUS: Lightning sparked Wesley Chapel apartment fire that displaced 200: PCFR

David Hooper and his mother, Susan, said this is just the beginning of a long recovery process but are happy to have a roof over their heads.

David had to work quickly to find housing.

"Came here this morning, signed the lease, and we're here," David Hooper said. "So, we've unpacked a lot of the stuff of the donations that we've had. We went shopping today for stuff that we needed."

Family history and loss

What they're saying:

Susan moved in with David after she suddenly losing her husband two years ago.

"After I went back home, I knew I didn't want to stay by myself because I'm not a… I like people around me," Susan Hooper said. "So, I decided to come and move in with my son David."

This move was going to be Susan's new beginning, but instead she is starting over again.

"The lady from the Red Cross said you're going to go through a grief process. Same thing as what I went through when I lost my husband," Susan Hooper said. "I remember being angry when I'd lost him. But then you work through it."

Personal possessions and heirlooms

Why you should care:

These two say they are thankful to be housed again, but are still coping with the loss of their home and possessions.

"We had my mom's dining room set from her parents, and pictures, and an uncle of David's," Susan Hooper said. "My brother-in-law had put together genealogy of the Hooper family."

"When you lose everything, you really don't realize, you know, how much stuff you have and when you don't have it, the needs that you need and things like that… and the stuff you took for granted," David Hooper said.

Rescue of family dog

Big picture view:

At the end of the day, they are glad they are alive and that their dog, Dixie, was rescued too.

"We rescued her, but then I say, when my husband died, she rescued me," Susan Hooper said. "So, that was why it was important that she be rescued again."

The Cobalt Apartment complex is no longer taking donations after an outpouring of support.

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