Burn victims in medically induced comas

A 1-year-old girl and her 28-year-old aunt who were burned in a mobile-home fire Friday remained in medically induced comas Tuesday as friends and good Samaritans worked to raise funds and replace what they lost.

The fire, which also claimed the life of the little girl's mother, Michelle Mariano, 22, was caused by a candle that was knocked over, according to Lt. Tamatha Villar, spokeswoman for the Pinal County Sheriff's Office.

Villar said the family, which lives in a sort of commune setting with extended family at Highway 238 and Ralston Road in unincorporated Maricopa about 25 miles south of Chandler, was uninsured and lost everything.

About the only things left standing among the rubble were an American flag and U.S. Marine Corps flag.

"It's a tragic, tragic, tragic, life-changing incident," Villar said.

Villar said the little girl, Eden, was burned over 45 percent of her body, mostly on her face and torso. Her aunt, Marion Mariano, suffered burns over 17 percent of her body, Villar said.

Firefighters were called to the mobile home at 8:30 a.m.

The sisters were in the home with Eden and Michelle's other child, 3-year-old Jaylen.

Jaylen pulled Eden from the fire and he escaped nearly unscathed.

The tragedy has rallied friends and the community to donate money, household items and clothes.

Marion's softball team, Wild Pitches, raised $2,000 at a car wash Sunday. The team has opened an account for the Mariano family at TruWest Credit Union and tossed around the idea of organizing a fundraising tournament next year.

Marion, the team's catcher, would have been one of the first to help out if one of her friends were in the same situation, said teammate Roberta Armendariz.

"We love her as a sister, as a friend, and we're going to do what we can to stand by her," Armendariz said.

Wild Pitches can be reached at Wildpitches9@hotmail.com.

Taylor Warner, who runs a family-owned UPS store in Maricopa, never met the Marianos.

Warner opened the Michelle Mariano Memorial Account at Wells Fargo Bank and his store, located at 20987 N. John Wayne Parkway in the Fry's Marketplace shopping center, is accepting clothing donations for the family.

"When I heard what the 3-year-old did, I wanted to do what I could," Warner said.

Villar said the Pinal County Sheriff's Office is collecting furniture and clothing for the family.

On Tuesday, Villar, with the help of Wal-Mart, delivered a new toy riding car to Jaylen to replace one that had been destroyed in the fire.

Villar said the family needs money for funeral expenses, child care and medical bills and needs beds, bedding and clothing.

Even if their personal belongings are replaced, Marion and Eden have a long, expensive journey to recovery.

Dr. Ruth Rimmer, a burn psychologist with the Arizona Burn Center at Maricopa Medical Center, said burns are painful injuries that can compromise the rest of the body.

"A burn injury is a lifelong injury," Rimmer said.

Victims who are disfigured have their identities changed forever, they have the burden of living in a beauty-focused world and they must learn skills to cope with the stares and questions they will get.

"There are great things plastic surgeons can do, but there's only so much they can do," Rimmer said.

A child has to get skin grafts almost annually because scarred flesh doesn't grow normally.

"It's almost like being in a dress that's too small and the tailor has to take it out and put a new piece in," Rimmer said.

And the costs for someone who has been severely burned can easily run into the millions, Rimmer said.

"It's a challenging journey, but the human spirit is amazingly strong, and I've worked with hundreds of patients, hundreds and hundreds of kids, and people are glad to survive it," Rimmer said.