Lashanna Gilbert shares her devastation after a fire destroyed her Jacksonville home, injuring two firefighters.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The owner of a Northside home destroyed in a fire that injured two Jacksonville firefighters is sharing her story for the first time.

Lashanna Gilbert was vacationing in Texas with her son when she received a call she never expected. Her home on Percy Creek Drive had caught fire and was a total loss. She was unable to leave Texas due to family obligations, but plans to return to Jacksonville to see the home next week. 



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“It’s a feeling that’s just so hard to describe when someone tells you everything is gone,” Gilbert said.

The fire broke out around 5:30 a.m. Tuesday. When firefighters arrived, they found heavy flames and were told someone might be trapped inside.

Two firefighters entered the burning home to search for possible victims. Both suffered minor burns during the effort.

Officials later determined no one was inside the house. Gilbert and her 11-year-old son were out of state at the time.

Learning that firefighters were hurt while trying to save her family has been difficult for Gilbert.

“It’s heartbreaking, um, to think that somebody risked their life to go in that house, not knowing whether I was in there or that my son was in the home,” she said.

Gilbert said she left Jacksonville on Sunday evening. Everything appeared normal before she left. She even had a package delivered Monday.

Then came the call from law enforcement.

“They were panicked,” Gilbert recalled.

Gilbert moved into the home nearly a year ago. She spent months making the space her own, filling it with plants and personal touches.

“It was a beautiful space. It was cozy, it was my home,” she said.

The home also held treasured belongings for her son, including signed sports jerseys and other keepsakes.

Gilbert said the loss extends far beyond the physical damage.

“The memories that were lost that I’ll never get back,” she said.

In the days since the fire, she says support from friends, neighbors and the community has helped her through the immediate aftermath.

“I’m so thankful,” Gilbert said.

Still, she says the reality of losing everything often hits during quiet moments.

“When I really sit down in the quiet moment, it’s those are the moments when it really hits me like. I literally have nothing to go home to,” she said.

Both firefighters have since been released from the hospital as of Wednesday.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.