Rock Hill mom who died in fire was trying to save children, neighbor says

The Rock Hill woman who died Saturday in a fire at her home went back inside in an effort to save her children, a neighbor said.

Yolanda Robinson, 35, died in the fire at her home on Southland Drive early Saturday.

“Yolanda did something any parent would do - try and save her children,,” said Julia Hall, a neighbor and friend of Robinson. “She was a great parent. They both are great parents. This is just devastating. She loved her sons with all her heart.”

Robinson and her husband, Latavuis Isom, 34, were married about two weeks ago. They have five children together, after being a couple for many years, said Isom’s mother, Gwen Singletary Isom.

The children, all boys, are Taquavious, 8; Delance, 7; Jacartier, 5; Omega, 4; and Dallas, 2; Singletary Isom said.

Latavuis was “severely burned,” and is critical after surgery at an Augusta, Ga., burn center, she said.

The three younger boys also were burned, and are in stable condition at the Georgia burn center, Singletary Isom said.

The two older children, who were rescued by a neighbor, were taken to Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, family and officials said.

“I just left the burn center, and all I can ask of Rock Hill is that people pray for our family,” Singletary Isom said.

Rock Hill Fire Department officials were told by neighbors that Robinson initially escaped the fire, but went back into the home to get her children, said Mark Simmons, deputy fire chief.

The fire department released an initial report from the fire Monday. The report states that neighbors were shouting that “people were trapped inside” when emergency responders arrived after 12:30 a.m. Saturday.

Firefighters went into the burning home and found the three younger boys in a hall, bedroom and living room, the report states.

Firefighters rescued all three boys and brought them outside, the report states.

Latavuis Isom was found in a hallway, and was pulled from the home by firefighters, the report states.

Yolana Robinson was found by firefighters in the living room and taken outside. She died at the scene, officials said.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation by Rock Hill and State Law Enforcement Division agents, which is a normal procedure when there is a fire fatality, said Simmons.

Hall said Latavuis and Yolanda were “exceptional parents.”

Latavuis would take the boys to a nearby park, and he fitted a riding lawn mower with a wagon to pull the smallest children as the oldest rode bicycles.

“Their whole world was those children,” Hall said.

Another neighbor, Emma Gaston, said she often saw the parents and children playing together.

“What happens breaks my heart,” Gaston said. “We all here in the Southland neighborhood are heartbroken.”

Some neighbors put balloons in the front yard.

The home was destroyed and the family lost all their possessions, family and neighbors said.

Several neighbors and friends are collecting clothes for the children.

This story was originally published October 1, 2018 at 12:43 PM.