Mother of 3-year-old killed in house fire speaks

ELDERVILLE, TX (KLTV) - Volunteers are working to help an East Texas family who lost their child and their home in a fire.

On Tuesday, 3-year-old, Ayden Bounds died when his home caught fire in Elderville, near East Texas regional airport.

Ayden's father and his1 and 4-year-old siblings were hospitalized with severe burns.

Ayden's mother spoke Thursday, thankful that two of her children are expected to survive, while grieving for the one she lost.

As donations come in at Solid Rock Church in Longview for the Bounds family, Tasha Holland recalls how she initially did not know what happened to her 3-year-old son Ayden.
 
"I was at the hospital with the other two. When I first got the call, I thought they said they had Ayden there, but after I processed it I think they were telling me they hadn't found him yet," she says.

But she soon realized Ayden was unaccounted for.

"I started panicking. I started telling people to call people, and in that moment, that's when several people came into the room and told me they had found his body. I'm still in disbelief. I don't now what to do," Holland says.
 
Tasha tells us Ayden was autistic, a child who saw the world much differently and personified innocence.

"I was very overprotective over him because he didn't know about danger," she says.

It's still not known exactly how the fire happened, but friends say it's more important to support a hurting family. Holland's two other children have been treated and released from hospitals.

For Tasha, it's a matter of trying to stay strong for her family."I know I have other children that I have to be there for," says Holland.
 
She says she is holding on to Ayden's memory. "I'll remember his laugh and his smile. He was always happy," Tasha says.

The family will have a private funeral for Ayden. Donation centers have been set up at Hallsville City Hall and Solid Rock Church in Longview for shoes, clothing and monetary donations.
 
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