Mom fighting for her life after Gulfport fire was ‘so proud’ of new baby. ‘It’s a tragedy.’

When Shanquetta Smith arrived home on Monday with her new baby boy, a neighbor was outside at William Bell Apartments ready to celebrate.

“I was so happy. I was screaming, ‘We got a new baby!’” said Ernestine Pope, who lived in a unit across the courtyard from Smith and her children.

The courtyard was where Smith’s children and other kids in the neighborhood would chase each other. Pope would often answer the door and give them snacks when they asked if she had candy or chips.

“They were beautiful, beautiful, respectful children,” a teary eyed Pope told the Sun Herald on Wednesday morning as neighbors gathered outside to embrace each other. “If you knew her babies, you’d fall in love with them.”

Life at William Bell Apartments changed overnight after Smith’s upstairs unit caught fire in the kitchen and spread through her unit. The young mother is in critical condition at a local hospital, and two of her young boys died in the blaze.

Vashun Viverette, 6, and Kakashi Aubrey, 4 days old, both died of smoke inhalation, Harrison County Coroner Brian Switzer said. Vashun died at 4:20 a.m. at Memorial Hospital at Gulfport and Kakashi died at 5:30 a.m. after being taken to Singing River Hospital in Gulfport.

Another of Smith’s children, age 4, was airlifted to a New Orleans hospital and is in critical condition, Gulfport Fire Chief Billy Kelley said. Jase Payne, spokesperson for the city of Gulfport, said a district fire chief flew with the 4-year-old and will be sending updates to the city.



Smith kept her friends and family updated on Kakashi’s birth through Facebook.



She posted a photo of Kakashi on Sunday with the caption “Handsome man” and several heart emojis.

Kakashi’s father was examined and is stable. He returned to William Bell Apartments and cried into the shoulder of a family member as the Red Cross arrived.

Smith’s neighbors and family members are praying for Smith’s recovery and trying to process what happened.

“It’s a tragedy, and I’m hurt,” Pope, who moved into her own unit at the complex in December, told the Sun Herald. “Today is not going to be the same. It could have been us.”

Smith’s cousin, Debrika Smith, lived in William Bell Apartments for years and at one point lived next to Shanquetta, she said.

Debrika had talked to her cousin a few days before the blaze and was planning to bring over newborn clothes for Kakashi that her own baby had outgrown.

“She’s good people, and she loved her kids,” Debrika said in a phone interview, adding that Shanquetta was always smiling and never in a down mood.

Pope, who lives just feet away from Smith’s unit, said she never heard smoke detectors go off. When she tested hers later in the morning, they worked and said neighbors from across the courtyard could hear them.

Kelley told the Sun Herald that Smith’s apartment was equipped with smoke detectors, but investigators are unsure if the alarms sounded during the blaze. An investigation is ongoing as family and neighbors hope for Smith and her child’s recovery.

”She was a sweet girl and so proud of her little baby,” Pope said.

Sun Herald reporter Mary Perez contributed to this report.