Fayetteville, N.C. — In a tragic twist, a Fayetteville woman who lost everything in a house fire just two years ago was herself killed Wednesday morning when her current home went up in flames. 25-year-old Ashley Nicole Bullock and her sons, Trevon, 6, and Andrew, 5, were trapped in a bedroom and died. 

Emergency crews responded to the single-story home, in the 8500 block of Cliffdale Road, at about 2:30 a.m. Juwann Bullock, working second shift, arrived home to find firefighters still working to put out the blaze that claimed his family. He told investigators that the home had working smoke detectors. 

Martin Kearse, a family friend, recalled that first fire.  

"It happened two years ago. She was at work and got a call and evidently a heater that was supposed to shut off didn't shut off at her old residence," Kearse said. "They lost everything. I wish she was at work now because she would still be here. I just can't imagine it." 

Kearse described the children as "typical, happy boys."

"I mean, they were fun, they were playful," he said.

It took nine units from the Fayetteville Fire Department about 45 minutes to bring the fire under control after it broke through the home's roof. Authorities did not say what caused the fire, but said it appeared to start in the rear of the home. 

The Red Cross said Wednesday it will help provide shelter, food, clothing and emotional support to Juwann Bullock and others impacted by the fire.

Fayetteville police closed the eastbound lanes of Cliffdale Road near Hoke Loop Road and diverted all traffic into the westbound lanes while crews investigated the fire.