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February 12, 2012

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Family identifies woman who died in North Las Vegas fire

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Jackie Valley

North Las Vegas Deputy Fire Chief Kevin Brame (bottom left) talks to another fire official Wednesday morning after an early-morning blaze at 3906 Redfield Ave. killed an elderly woman and her cat. Fire officials said smoking materials appear to be the cause of the accidental fire.

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Thursday, July 29, 2010 | 4:06 p.m.

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Jackie Valley

An early-morning fire Wednesday at 3906 Redfield Ave. in North Las Vegas killed an 80-year-old woman and her cat. Fire officials said smoking materials appear to be the cause of the accidental fire.

House fire site

Family members identified the elderly woman who died in a North Las Vegas home fire Wednesday as Beverly Mohler — a Las Vegas enthusiast who moved here after retiring.

Mohler's brother, Michael Higgins, said his sister moved to North Las Vegas about 18 or 19 years ago after retiring from her job in Wilmington, Del.

"She liked Vegas," said Higgins, who lives in Tulsa, Okla. "She'd go out there and play the slots, so finally, she moved out there."

Mohler had just celebrated her 80th birthday July 17 and was excited about recently adopting her cat, who also died in the fire, Higgins said.

North Las Vegas fire officials said firefighters responded to a call about smoke in a neighborhood at 4:33 a.m. and found smoke pouring from a chimney at 3906 Redfield Ave. — the only indication of a fire at the residence.

Deputy Fire Chief Kevin Brame said aluminum shutters attached to the outside of the home's doors and windows, probably for safety reasons, concealed the fire, which had started on living room room furniture.

"As a result, it was difficult for our crews to get in," he said Monday. "They had to force their way in."

Upon entry, they found Mohler in her wheelchair with a cat, officials said. North Las Vegas and Las Vegas firefighters extinguished the blaze within 16 minutes.

Higgins said fire officials speculate that his sister's smoking materials may have sparked a fire with the oxygen she was using. Her mobile wheelchair's position indicates that she tried to escape, he said.

The aluminum shutters intensified the fire because the flames and smoke had nowhere to escape, except for the chimney, Brame said.

"In this case, because the house is so encapsulated, it literally became an oven," he said.

Officials said the fire caused $75,000 worth of damage to the home.

In addition to her brother, Mohler is survived by her son, David Cox, of Emporia, Kan.

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