A Morvant mother and her five children are homeless after fire gutted their upstairs apartment on Tuesday morning, destroying everything they owned,  from appliances and furniture to school uniforms and books.

Police said around 8:48 a.m., Shatarra Michelle Alexander, 30, was at a friend’s home in Port of Spain when she received a call from her aunt that her home at LP #68 St. Francois Valley Road was ablaze. By the time she returned minutes later, the two upstairs apartments she shared with her children and father were engulfed and reduced to ashes.

The family lost a refrigerator, stove, three beds, a washing machine, a flat-screen TV, food supplies, clothing, and school essentials for the children, along with other personal items.