During a Saturday FaceTime, Anna Peterson watched in horror as smoke and chaos engulfed her family home
Anna Peterson
NEED TO KNOW
- Anna Peterson’s family home in Minnesota burned down during a Saturday FaceTime call from New York.
- The fire destroyed decades of memories, but everyone escaped safely
- Since then, TikTok has become a lifeline for her to share her family’s story and connect with others
Anna Peterson thought she was just starting a normal Saturday morning FaceTime with her family. It began like any other call — a virtual breakfast with her 3-year-old niece, Ellie, her sister, Dr. Zoe Larson, and her brother, Piff Peterson.
But within moments, the ordinary turned terrifying. Screams echoed. Smoke billowed in the background. Frantic footsteps shuffled across the screen. Then came the panicked words: “I’ll call you back.”
Watching from New York, Peterson, 26, felt a helplessness she had never known. “It was shock first — then fear — then this overwhelming instinct of, ‘Are they safe?’ ” she says. “I didn’t even know what was happening, I just knew they were in danger.”
Everyone Peterson loved was in the house that morning: her sister holding her 2-month-old son, her 3-year-old niece, her brother and their father upstairs in bed.
“I could see everyone rushing and screaming, the babies crying,” she says. “My sister is so strong, and watching her be filled with fear was heartbreaking. When the people you love most are inside and in danger, and you’re watching the chaos unfold from a thousand miles away, it’s impossible to describe that feeling.”
Anna Peterson
For an agonizing hour, she tracked her family on Find My Friends and called repeatedly. Eventually, her brother answered and turned the camera toward the house — a massive cloud of smoke rose from the garage.
Their family home, built by her parents 25 years ago, was gone.
“My parents poured years of savings, weekends, late nights, everything into creating it,” Peterson says. “All four of us grew up there — toddlers, teenagers, college kids coming home, adults bringing partners and babies back through the front door.”
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@concertin4k
of course the sentimental items hit, but things from a normal routine makes everything feel extra heavy 💔 ugh. Especially feeling for my sister and her kids stuff #housefire #loss #minnesota #fire #grief
♬ original sound – Anna✨🪩
Peterson recalls how, over two decades, the family sat in the same seats on Christmas morning. The same plastic strainer was used for pumpkin seeds every Halloween. Handmade ornaments and stockings — from kindergarten creations to 35-year-old keepsakes from England — carried decades of memory. Baby books, handwritten letters, cards from grandparents long gone, military awards, souvenirs and old film photos from when her dad was stationed in England — each drawer and closet held a story.
“You don’t realize how much history is stored in ordinary things until it disappears,” Peterson says. “There’s something especially painful about losing the quiet, everyday objects — the proof of where you’ve been.”
Even amid loss, the family keeps returning to what matters most: everyone escaped safely. “The house held our story, but our story continues,” she says.
@concertin4k
unsure of how to even say this and hoping it’s a nightmare we get to wake up from- but everything is gone 💔 around 10:00 am a sudden fire started while my family was inside (including my niece and newborn nephew) and we were on a normal breakfast facetime. Things progressed fast and by the end of the day, everything was engulfed and nothing is salvageable. Grateful beyond belief everyone made it out, but we’re heartbroken and just in disbelief at this loss and trauma. Thank you x 10000 to everyone who has reached out and sent love ❤️🩹
♬ think of me every once in a while – slowed audios
The aftermath, Peterson says, has been exhausting. Her sister is still healing from frostbite after running barefoot from the house with two of her kids, while the older children are adjusting to life without their rooms or toys. Temporary housing, insurance paperwork and rebuilding logistics dominate their days.
TikTok became a lifeline. Peterson shared the story on her account, where she had mostly posted about music and concerts previously. The response was overwhelming: strangers shared their own stories of fire, loss and rebuilding, offered prayers and advice, and even artists like Alex Warren reached out with encouragement. Her brother Piff’s videos also went viral, reaching millions of views.
“It’s shown us how powerful storytelling can be — not for attention, but for connection,” Peterson says.
@concertin4k
clinging to the good ❤️🩹❤️🩹 sometimes that’s all we can do!! #housefire #loss #grief #fyp #goodthingoftheday @trexcookie @Kleenex®️ Brand @northface
♬ I’ve Seen It – Olivia Dean
Through it all, the family is learning that resilience isn’t polished. The family has also set up a GoFundMe to help them rebuild.
“It’s crying in the middle of the day and making another insurance call anyway,” Peterson says. “It’s holding grief and logistics at the same time. Our mottos right now are ‘day by day’ and ‘the only way out is through.’ You just move through it — slowly, imperfectly.”
She adds, “Things are fleeting. They can be gone in seconds. The house held our memories, but the people are the memory. The love is the memory. Generosity and community matter more than we realize. Even in the hardest season of our lives, love is still circulating.”
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