HOLLYWOOD, Fla. \u2014 Just hours after his wife\u2019s death, 92-year-old George Argenio sat in his bedroom, staring at a wedding photo mounted on the wall \u2014 a memory of a life now suddenly gone.<\/p>\n
On Tuesday, firefighters pulled Barbara Argenio from the couple\u2019s apartment at Edgewater Beach Towers in Hollywood after a fire broke out in the penthouse unit above them.<\/p>\n
\u201cI went upstairs to the PH floor,\u201d George Argenio said. \u201cI couldn\u2019t see the wall \u2014 that\u2019s how much smoke there was.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barbara Argenio was taken to HCA Florida Aventura Hospital for evaluation and care. Despite efforts to revive her, she died shortly after.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey revived her once,\u201d George Argenio said. \u201cShe went back down to the ER. They put the hoses in her mouth. She lasted about 20 minutes \u2014 and that was it.\u201d<\/p>\n
A witness shared video from the scene, saying it showed the tenant who lives in the penthouse unit where the fire began.<\/p>\n
\u201cI tried to go and open the door, but there was too much smoke,\u201d the witness said.<\/p>\n
According to George Argenio, firefighters told him the blaze may have started after the resident in the penthouse set a timer on his coffee maker and left for the beach, possibly leaving his patio door open.<\/p>\n
George Argenio, the building\u2019s longtime supervisor, was home in his 11th-floor apartment when he first smelled smoke. He left to investigate, leaving his wife behind.<\/p>\n
\u201cI talked to one of the firemen,\u201d he recalled. \u201cI said, \u2018my wife is in 1101.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
The couple had no children, but George Argenio is surrounded by neighbors who say they will make sure he is never alone.<\/p>\n
\ud83c\udfe0 News From Your Neighborhood<\/p>\n
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