Fire Destroys Tulsa Home Days After New Owner Pays First Mortgage Payment

The fire is one of four possible arsons keeping Tulsa fire investigators busy.

Three happened on Saturday and one on Sunday.

A couple of the houses were vacant, but one of them had just been purchased last month.

A 26-year-old single mother just bought the house in April through Habitat 4 Hope. She painted and was planning to move in this weekend.

But now, all that's left is the charred remains of her American dream.

Joda Sanders is trying to explain to her 2-year-old son what happened to their home.

She bought it in April and made her first payment on May 3rd, then got a call Saturday morning saying it had burned to the ground.

She's still in shock from it all.

"Still hoping I wake up, like it's a really bad dream," Sanders said.

She says she painted the living room and primed the dining room and was in the process of fixing the back door, which at some point, had been kicked in.

Had they gotten it fixed, she says they planned to move in Friday night, but her dad was taken to the hospital, so her plans changed. That turned out to be a potential life saver for her and her son.

"I'm just glad I wasn't here, I could've lost him or my car, all of it," Sanders said.

So, while she tries to count her blessings, Joda says she is also trying to figure out what to do next.

Fire investigators said while the other three fires on Saturday are arson, this one is undetermined because the utilities were hooked up, but they are investigating.

If it was deliberately set, Joda says she can't imagine why, other than maybe someone thought it was abandoned and nobody would be hurt, but they couldn't have been more wrong.

"I don't know why they do that? I don't understand," she said.

Joda said she'll stay with her parents for now until things get sorted out, and she still has dreams of owning her own home.