NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The younger of two sisters hurt in a house fire has succumbed to her injuries. Tommie Katherine Bass died just after midnight Wednesday.
The 96-year-old woman known as "TK" and 101-year-old sister, Novella Bass, were both injured when their home in Bordeaux caught fire Monday evening.
Family members said both women suffered from limited mobility and had to be rescued from the burning home by firefighters.
Novella's adoptive son, Freeman Bass, told NewsChannel 5 she walks with the aid of a walker and was found on her bed on a ground level. TK, legally blind and mobile only with help from a cane, was found collapsed in the floor of a hallway.
Both women were being treated at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in the critical burn unit. Novella was still listed in critical condition Wednesday morning.
"With the advanced age, with the significance of their injuries, the likelihood of having this being a good turnout is not very good," burn center director Dr. Jeff Guy told NewsChannel 5 Tuesday.
Officials with the Nashville Fire Department said there was no evidence of a single, working smoke detector inside what was left of the three-level house.
Investigators believed the fire started in the ground-level kitchen area, and was likely started when a caretaker accidentally left a hot stove on.
Freeman Bass said both women earned Master's degrees in education. He said both were retired Metro school teachers: Novella Bass having taught English at the former Washington Junior High School, Pearl High School, and even TSU.
TK spent her teaching career at Johnson Elementary School in South Nashville.
Funeral service arrangements for TK Bass were not available.
Tommie Katherine "TK" Bass died Wednesday after midnight after suffering burn injuries when her home caught on fire. She was 96-year-old.
Novella Bass, age 101, remained in critical condition at Vanderbilt University Medical Center's burn center.
The two sisters shared a three-level home in the Bordeaux area. Both women had to be rescued by firefighters when the home caught fire Monday.
