On November 22nd, Lisa Treviño received news that is every mother’s worst nightmare. Police officers came to Treviño’s house and informed her that two teenage girls had died in a fire at a nearby apartment.

One of the girls was her daughter, 15-year-old Azalyia “YaYa” Hernandez. The other victim was her friend, 16-year-old Eliza “Ellie” Maurer.

The girls were sophomores at Fredericksburg High School. The night started out like a typical weekend for any teenager: Hernandez told her mother that she was going to go to a sleepover with Maurer after they had both attended a quinceañera with her family earlier that day.

“I’m the type that when my kids aren’t at home, I’m the type that calls them. And I can’t go to sleep until I hear from them that they’re okay,” Treviño told Spectrum News 1. “I told her, ‘Okay, Azalyia, make good choices, think good choices and I love you.’ And the last text I got, ‘I will mom. I love you too.'” That was the last communication Treviño had with her daughter.

The Maurer family is also coping with their grief. They released a statement, saying: “We are shocked and devastated at the news of our daughter’s death. Ellie (Eliza) was a beautiful child. She loved playing basketball and volleyball. She had a spunky personality and was a social butterfly. Ellie was loved by her friends and family. We still cannot believe this happened. We have been so blessed by the outpouring of support by friends, family and the community and we are incredibly thankful for that.”

According to the Sorola-Treviño family, police suspect foul play was involved.

“As with all deaths, they are treated as a homicide until proven otherwise,” said Fredericksburg Chief of Police Steven Wetz to Spectrum News 1.

According to Treviño, police told her that the girls’ bodies were found in a bedroom. The Fredericksburg Police Department says that the primary causes of both deaths was smoke inhalation. Evidence points to the fire having been started on a couch.

“The very first thing that they told us was that they found them nude and that there was foul play, and there was some suspects who had run from the apartment,” said Gary Sorola, Hernandez’s stepfather, to Fox 7 Austin.

It is still unknown why the girls were at the apartment building, but the Sorola-Treviño family say that the girls knew the son of the woman who rents the apartment.

The Fredericksburg community is shaken by the death of the two girls. Both of the girls’ families are devastated. The victims’ families and friends said the two girls had big plans for the future. Ellie wanted to become a lawyer, while YaYa wanted to join the Air Force and work with K-9s before becoming a nurse.

December 14th would have been Azalyia’s 16th birthday. But now, her mother will have to endure what should have been a happy day without her daughter.

“Now she’s gone and I’m not gonna have a chance to ever see her grow or accomplish what she wanted to accomplish. She’s gone. They took her from me too young,” Treviño said.

Police are asking anyone with information about the night in question (November 21st) to come forward. Contact them at 830-997-7585 or call Crime Stoppers at 997-8477 (TIPS).

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There has been positive news about vaccines for Covid-19. However, the virus is still raging in the U.S. and causing avoidable deaths. A story out of Texas is highlighting the threat of Covid still today after a mother and father dies leaving behind a soon-to-be 5-year-old.

The parents of a 4-year-old boy in San Antonio died from Covid months apart.

4-year-old Raiden Gonzalez lost both his mom and his dad to the coronavirus and yet some people still don’t think that they need to practice social distancing or wear a mask. We’re all in this together. Let’s act like it. https://t.co/VfCMaW9U5L

— Andrew Weinstein (@Weinsteinlaw) November 15, 2020

Adan and Mariah Gonzalez are two of the more than 240,000 Americans who have died of Covid. The tragic deaths of Adan and Mariah, months apart, left 4-year-old Raiden Gonzalez alone as his birthday and holiday season near.

“Sweet Mariah Gonzalez left the world this morning unexpectedly due to COVID 19  She joins her husband and best friend, Adan Gonzalez who recently passed due to COVID-19,” reads a GoFundMe set up to help Raiden. “They leave behind their beautiful 4-year-old son Raiden who loves his parents more than anything. Mariah’s bubbly personality, amazing teaching and makeup skills, her joy of motherhood, and beautiful smile will be so beyond missed.”

Raiden’s story is highlighting the growing toll of the worsening health crisis.

A heartbreaking story about the toll this virus has taken on so many families.

Raiden Gonzalez will turn five at the end of this month. If you can, pitch in to support his family: https://t.co/GfcZ09Qwk6 https://t.co/JSZCGd1sPV

— Julián Castro (@JulianCastro) November 16, 2020

The U.S. has recorded more than 100,000 cases every day for the past 12 days. These numbers are breaking records for most infections in one day. Texas has seen a recent spike in Covid cases, along with all U.S. states but Texas was the first state to cross the grave milestone of 1 million cases. Despite the increase, Texas officials have not moved to reinstate restrictions to slow the spread of the virus.

“Seeing the good data [in late summer] seemed to send a signal that we were in the right direction and we were in the clear,” Angela Clendenin, an epidemiologist at Texas A&M University told WFAA. “And I think people lost their vigilance.”

This virus is still running rampant in the U.S. and cases are spiking, as predicted.

Think about Raiden Gonzalez before “just hanging out with your friends”. https://t.co/9WdtNd1WLD

— Brenden Payne (@PayneBrenden) November 15, 2020

Experts are urging Americans to be safe and smart this holiday season. The holidays are posing a very real risk of an explosion in new cases if people don’t adhere to guidelines. Health experts have come out strongly against indoor, in-person gatherings for the holidays to get control of the virus.

“My Thanksgiving is going to look very different this year,” Dr. Anthony Fauci told CBS News. “I would love to have it with my children, but my children are in three separate states throughout the country and in order for them to get here, they would all have to go to an airport, get on a plane and travel with public transportation.”

Raiden’s birthday is Nov. 28 and his family wants to give him the best one possible.

OMG this story is tearing my heart to pieces. I want to hug Raiden Gonzalez!! I would adopt him in heartbeat. I'm so glad he has his loving Grandma with him.https://t.co/puXuk0JoHH

— countrymusicfan 🦋 (@cntrymusicfan) November 15, 2020

The GoFundMe page includes the information for anyone wanting to attend the “Roar and Wave” birthday party. There is also an address included for anyone who wants to help Raiden celebrate with gifts and cards.

“He likes dinosaurs, he likes monster trucks, he likes Hot Wheels,” his grandmother and caretaker Rozie Salinas told NBC News. “But being that he picked the dinosaur theme for his birthday, he really liked it.”

READ: New Covid-19 Lockdowns Are Coming To Parts Of The U.S. And Here’s What You Need To Know

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