Man planning to propose dies in Christmas house fire, California family says
A man who was planning to propose to his girlfriend in about a week died in a Christmas house fire after saving several family members, according to officials and news reports.
The man, identified by relatives as Steven Weatherford Jr., got everyone else out of the Oakland home, the Oakland Fire Department wrote in a Dec. 25 post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
But he “was overcome and likely disoriented by the smoke,” and firefighters found him unconscious inside, fire officials said.
The cause of the fire was under investigation, officials said.
Family members told news outlets KTVU and ABC 7 that Weatherford was planning to propose to his girlfriend, LaShante Mayo, on New Year’s Eve.
Mayo told KTVU that the proposal was a surprise. “I didn’t know, they told me this morning…I had given up on love until I had met him,” she told the KTVU.
Relatives told the station that Weatherford stayed in the burning house to find the engagement ring.
His aunt, Eunice Smith, called Weatherford “a hero” in an interview with ABC 7.
“He was a good person. He was a good family man,” she said.
In a GoFundMe set up for the family, a neighbor wrote that the home belongs to Weatherford’s father, who “already endured immense heartbreak” by losing his wife about four years ago.
“Now, he faces the unbearable grief of losing one of his sons in such a sudden and tragic way,” the neighbor wrote.
As the news spread, people shared messages on what appears to be Weatherford’s Facebook page.
“RIP STEVEN. Such a pure heart and kind soul. So sorry to your family for what they are experiencing right now,” one person wrote in part.
Another person wrote, “My brother you will never be gone for your memories will always be with us.”
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