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Marisol P\u00e9rez\u2019s sisters Maria Lopez, left, and Rosalinda Martinez are seen during a vigil for Marisol and her son Erik P\u00e9rez Jr., Sunday, May 31, 2026, in Dallas. Marisol and Erik Jr. died in the Oak Cliff fire on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Chitose Suzuki\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n
Calls, texts and prayers all went unanswered Thursday afternoon\u00a0\u2014 the day\u00a0Marisol\u00a0P\u00e9rez and her toddler’s Oak Cliff apartment was demolished<\/a> by an explosion that sparked a five-alarm fire.<\/p>\n Nora Carmona and Maria Lopez,\u00a0P\u00e9rez\u2019s sisters, were both at work when they received a call from their mother saying she had just talked to the police about \u00a0P\u00e9rez\u2019s 10-year-old daughter. Something bad had happened, their mother said.\u00a0<\/p>\n The sisters clocked out immediately; Carmona went to the apartment complex, while Lopez drove to their mother\u2019s house.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Shortly before 1 p.m. on May 28, first responders arrived to fight the fire<\/a> at The Clyde apartments in the 400 block of East 9th Street. Officials said the blaze killed two women and a child\u00a0\u2014 identified by family and friends<\/a> as P\u00e9rez, 38, her 18-month-old son Erik\u00a0P\u00e9rez Jr. and Sylvia Collins, 75\u00a0\u2014 and injured at least five people.<\/p>\n Marisol P\u00e9rez\u2019s husband Erik P\u00e9rez, not face to camera, receives a hug during a vigil for Marisol and their son Erik Jr., Sunday, May 31, 2026, in Dallas. Marisol and Erik Jr. died in the Oak Cliff fire on Thursday.<\/p>\n Chitose Suzuki\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n \u201cI knew my mom, I knew she would be inconsolable. Devastated,\u201d Lopez said. \u201cAnd I just couldn\u2019t go to the scene\u2026I couldn\u2019t see it.\u201d<\/p>\n P\u00e9rez had lived at Clyde on and off for eight years,\u00a0Carmona said. She would have turned 39 in June.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Her sisters said she was the picture of innocence; she loved everyone. She was funny, and her laugh was contagious, they said. She had a big heart. All things their family would miss about her most.<\/p>\n Once she was at the scene, Carmona said they had to treat her mother in an ambulance<\/a>. P\u00e9rez\u2019s daughter, Vanessa\u00a0P\u00e9rez, escaped with minor scratches, but Carmona believes she has a long path ahead of her.<\/p>\n \u201cShe has a lot of support from us,\u201d Lopez said. \u201cWe\u2019re going to care for Vanessa and love her always.\u201d Vanessa will turn 11 on Monday; her first birthday without her mother.<\/p>\n Marisol P\u00e9rez\u2019s sisters Nora Carmona, left, and Maria Lopez speak about P\u00e9rez as showing a photograph of P\u00e9rez and her son Erik P\u00e9rez Jr., Sunday, May 31, 2026, in Dallas. Marisol and Erik Jr. died in the Oak Cliff fire on Thursday.<\/p>\n Chitose Suzuki\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s just really hard to believe, to process,\u201d Lopez said. \u201cIt happened so fast. Sometimes I don\u2019t even believe this is real.\u201d<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The family got a call about 9:30 p.m. Thursday regarding identification for the people who had been found in the wreckage.\u00a0<\/p>\n After P\u00e9rez\u2019s husband returned from a work trip Friday, they submitted a DNA test in hopes of finding out for sure if their sister and her baby could be put to rest,\u00a0Carmona said. Officials have yet to publicly identify the three fatalities.<\/p>\n The\u00a0P\u00e9rez family held a vigil Sunday at their home in the Bishop Arts district, about two streets away from the wreckage<\/a>. Around 100 people gathered there, bringing candles, along with flowers in shades of red, yellow and white.<\/p>\n Dozens of photographs of\u00a0P\u00e9rez and Erik sat atop white and silver embossed cloths on the steps of the house. A Mickey Mouse stuffed animal was placed next to the memorial as onlookers approached with blue balloons that read \u201cbaby boy.\u201d<\/p>\n Marisol P\u00e9rez\u2019s cousin Guadalupe Villa places flowers before a vigil for Marisol and her son Erik P\u00e9rez Jr. Sunday, May 31, 2026, in Dallas. Marisol and Erik Jr. died in the Oak Cliff fire on Thursday.<\/p>\n Chitose Suzuki\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n Both sisters said they want everyone to remember P\u00e9rez as a good person and her son as the happy baby they remember him as.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Since the explosion, the Oak Cliff community has come together<\/a> to grieve the people who were lost and compile resources<\/a> for those left without a home.<\/p>\n People held onto each other, as Carlos Quintanilla, who ran for Texas\u2019 33rd Congressional District in the March 3 primary, led the group in prayer.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cMarisol was a mother, a sister, and a child,\u201d Quintanilla said. \u201cShe was a member of this community. We may not be able to bring her and Erik back, but we can bring them justice.\u201d<\/p>\n The latest update, given Friday by Dallas Fire-Rescue\u00a0Chief Justin Ball, assured people that everyone had been accounted for<\/a> and emphasized the next focus would be investigating the cause. The National Transportation Safety Board is heading the investigation.<\/p>\n Marisol P\u00e9rez\u2019s husband Erik P\u00e9rez, foreground right, receives a hug during a vigil for Marisol and their son Erik Jr., Sunday, May 31, 2026, in Dallas. Marisol and Erik Jr. died in the Oak Cliff fire on Thursday.<\/p>\n Chitose Suzuki\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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