Fla. Girl, 11, Dies After Running Back into Burning Home to Save Her Puppies: She 'Had a Heart of Gold'
GoFundMe
An 11-year-old girl in Sarasota, Florida died on Wednesday after trying to rescue her puppies from her burning home.
"Multiple 911 calls" were placed around 5:45 p.m. with reports of two homes on fire, Sarasota County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.
"Witnesses reported seeing a young female enter one of the homes and although bystanders tried to render aid, the female never exited the home," the statement read. "According to witnesses, the child may have been attempting to save her dogs from the fire."
The 11-year-old was identified as Rilee Beisler.
Rilee had two 7-month-old pitbull puppies named Luna and Dobby, a GoFundMe page to support her family revealed.
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Rilee's aunt, Laura Alden, told WFLA-TV that the sixth grader "had a heart of gold."
"She loves those dogs," Alden continued. "Those were her babies."
Alden added, "She was loving, a really sweet girl — creative, artsy, loved to mess with her hair and do crazy stuff with her hair.
"To us, Rilee died trying to be a hero… and that speaks volumes about who she was," she told the outlet.
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The State Fire Marshall is conducting an investigation into the fire and official cause of death in partnership with the Medical Examiner's Office, the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.
"At this time, the incident does not seem criminal in nature and Rilee is believed to have died due to smoke inhalation," officials noted.
