The death of a woman experiencing homelessness in a Greeley grass fire on Saturday is sparking demands for more shelter resources in the city, where advocates say options are extremely limited.
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Family members are identifying 45-year-old Dizarae O’Toole-Ochoa as the victim of the vegetation fire near the Highway 34 and Highway 85 interchange in Greeley. The woman’s partner was also badly hurt in the fire and is in the hospital in critical condition, according to the Greeley Police Department.
Tammy McKee, the mother of the victim, said her daughter had recently moved to a homeless encampment with her partner near the highway when the fire tore through the area. The Greeley Fire Department said the flames burned about 15 acres. Investigators said they’re looking into whether a microburst that bent power poles in the area sparked the blaze.
“My daughter was a beautiful woman. She cared about a lot of people,” McKee said. “She was struggling with addiction, but then here in the last month, she had gotten clean. She started going to church.”
McKee, who used to be homeless herself, said she saw her daughter several times a week and gave her what she could, like deodorant, shampoo or towels.
“She’d come and stay if she needed,” McKee said. “I didn’t have money to give her. So I give her what she needs and my love. All my love.”
McKee said she believes more shelter options for women in Greeley could have given her daughter a second chance, and maybe saved her life.
“I just want resources here so these people can get off the streets before somebody else dies,” McKee said…