By Courtney Dentch
A Brookville grandmother died Monday morning after flames spread through her kitchen as she was cooking breakfast for her 6-year-old grandson, fire marshals said.
Rosemary Jarrett, 47, of 227-12 146th Ave., suffered burns over her entire body in the blaze that broke out at 7:37 a.m., a Fire Department spokesman said.
Jarrett's grandson, Javon Edwards, made it out of the home with minor injuries, and he was taken to Mary Immaculate Hospital for medical treatment.
While the official cause of the fire was still under investigation, it appeared the blaze began in the kitchen of the one-story home, said one of the fire marshals.
“Either she leaned over and caught her clothes on fire or something jumped up from the stove onto her,” he said. “Her clothes were completely burned off of her.”
About 60 firefighters arrived to battle the flames, which were brought under control in just under a half hour, a Fire Department spokesman said. The fire was contained in the kitchen, but smoke spread throughout the first floor.
The tenants living in the basement apartment, a woman, her son and her boyfriend, escaped the blaze after they heard Jarrett screaming, a fire marshal said. They also helped Jarrett's grandson flee the house.
It was unclear why Jarrett was unable to make it out of the house, especially since a side door was near the kitchen, the marshal said.
One firefighter suffered minor injuries, including a strained back and neck He was treated at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, the spokesman said.
Jarrett, a deeply religious Jamaican immigrant, had a son and four daughters, and was raising two of her grandchildren, neighbors said. The second grandson was at school when the fire began.
Reach reporter Courtney Dentch by e-mail at TimesLedger@aol.com, or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 138.
