YORK, Co — A York County family is mourning the loss of their 94-year-old mother and grandmother, along with two dogs, after a Friday night fire destroyed the home they had shared for nearly four decades.
Nam Do Lim lived in the home with her daughters, Judy McKin and Lisa Joo. McKin said the family had lived there since the house was built in the late 1980s.
McKin said she was down the street when the fire started. By the time she returned, the home was engulfed in flames and she learned her mother was still inside.
“When I came it was a fire already all over the house and I just had to stay outside,” McKin said. “I noticed they told me my mom was inside the house, so I told them I need to go see my mom, and they said no.”
McKin said she could do little but wait outside as firefighters worked to rescue her mother. Lim did not survive.
“And so I was waiting for her out there, and maybe 20 minutes later and they brought the body out here,” McKin said.
Two dogs also died in the fire.
The tragedy has left the family grieving while also trying to determine how to rebuild their lives. The fire destroyed the home that held decades of family memories and nearly everything the sisters owned.
Kevin Onizuk, Lim’s grandson-in-law, described the aftermath as the “loss of everything they had in their lives.”
McKin and Joo are both retired and rely on Social Security, according to the family. They said the home was not covered by homeowners insurance.
The sisters are now staying in temporary housing while the family determines what comes next.
Another structure on the property could potentially provide them with a place to live, but the family said it would need significant work before that could happen.
Despite the uncertainty, Onizuk said people have already begun reaching out to help.
“Many folks have reached out. We really appreciate it,” Onizuk said. “We did set up a GoFundMe.”
For a family that has called the property home since the late 1980s, starting over will mean rebuilding after losing nearly everything they owned while also grieving losses that cannot be replaced.
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