The Brookfield community is rallying around a local family who lost their house, nearly all their belongings and their cats in a fire on Father’s Day morning. It happened on High Ridge Road just before 9:30 a.m.

“I heard an explosion, not a firecracker, an explosion,” said neighbor Yvonne Rivera.

Rivera said she got up and looked outside but didn’t see anything. Then came a knock from a neighbor who told her the Foster family's home was on fire. Amy and Jay Foster and their three kids live next door to Rivera.

“We all ran out to see,” she recalled. “They were already out here in their pajamas without shoes. The little girl had like a doll in her hand.”

Rivera said the flames spread, causing the roof to buckle and the deck to collapse.

“It was devastating. I’ve never seen anything like that in my life,” she told News 12.

Even worse, the family's two cats were still inside.

“They tried to call the cats. They wouldn't come out at all,” Rivera said. “The cats didn't survive and that was heartbreaking to them and to me.”

When the Brookfield Volunteer Fire Company arrived, they found the fire raging. They called in extra resources from neighboring towns and cities including, Danbury, Bethel, New Milford and Newtown. The chief said crews got the fire under control in 90 minutes but were on scene for several hours. The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Brookfield Fire Marshal’s Office and the Connecticut State Police Fire and Explosion Investigation Unit.

The family’s home is now a burned-out shell. Their belongings and things from the most important moments in their lives were reduced to rubble.

But the Fosters aren't alone. A GoFundMe effort raised more than $54,000 to help the family recover. Money can't replace all that they lost, but the family is grateful for the community's support.

Rivera said she only moved to town in September in her neighborhood, “We watch out for each other. We're willing to do anything we can for them.”