11-Year-Old Girl Dies in House Fire Heroically Trying to Save Her Two Puppies
A young 11-year-old girl tragically lost her life in a house fire while trying to rescue her two puppies.
According to a report from the Sarasota County Sheriff's Department, police have launched an investigation into the devastating loss after receiving calls on Wednesday that two homes in a Florida RV park were on fire.
"Witnesses reported seeing a young female enter one of the homes and although bystanders tried to render aid, the female never exited the home," the department wrote on Facebook. "According to witnesses, the child may have been attempting to save her dogs from the fire."
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Witnesses also helped authorities and WFLA identify the victim as 11-year-old Rilee Beisler, a sixth-grader at McIntosh Middle School who moved into the Sun N Fun RV resort with her mother and two dogs six months ago.
"She had a heart of gold," Beisler's aunt Laura Alden told WFLA. "She loves those dogs. They were a pain in the butt. They were 7-month-old pitbull puppies and, you know, puppies are hyper but she loved those dogs and those were her babies."
Alden also explained in a TV interview with WFLA that her niece actually made it out of the fire unscathed before reentering the burning building to save her dogs.
"She really loves animals, and that's actually how it happened," Alden told the outlet. "She was going back into the house for the dogs. She loved those dogs."
Though neighbors tried to stop her, Beisler was undeterred.
"Rilee was the kind of kid, if she wants it, she was going to go for it," Alden said through tears. "Stubborn pre-teen."
"That speaks volumes about who she was, because she was out of the fire, she was out of the house, and she went back in it," she added.
The Sarasota County Sheriff's Department reported that "at this time ... Rilee is believed to have died due to smoke inhalation." They did note, however, they are waiting on an official report from the Medical Examiner's Office.
The sheriff's office also indicated that they do not suspect foul play to have been a factor in the blaze.
"At this time, the incident does not seem criminal in nature," they wrote on Facebook, noting at the investigation with the State Fire Marshall is still "active and ongoing."
Newsweek also reached out to Alden, but she declined to provide additional comments at this time.
