GREENBRIER, Tenn. - A 61-year-old Robertson County woman was severely burned after her house caught fire.
It happened around 2 a.m. Sunday on Church Street in Greenbrier. The fire was believed to have started in an downstairs bedroom where Martha Sharp was sleeping. She told authorities that she remembered falling asleep with a lit cigarette and woke up to her room being engulfed in flames. Sharp was sitting on the porch when firefighters arrived at the scene and was able to tell them what happened.
On Sunday, doctors reported she had burns on 60 percent of her body and that she might not survive. But Sharp's husband said she has a history of beating the odds and he's confident this obstacle will be no different.
"She is a very, very strong woman she has been through a lot in the past couple of years," said Sharp's grandson, Taylor Elmore.
Martha Sharp battled an aneurysm, an infection, pneumonia and a heart attack, all within the past two years.
"There was one point when she got down to 98 pounds but she is a fighter she is a tough woman, yes she is, after that she had a heart attack they said she had what they call broken heart syndrome," said Donnie Sharp.
Now Sharp, her husband of 46 years, is nursing his own broken heart: waiting to find out if Martha can survive the burns from a fire that tore through their Greenbrier home overnight.
Donnie Sharp said their wooden home, built in 1890, didn't stand a chance.
On Sunday, her six grand kids, three daughters and husband stood vigil by her bedside where they hope her reputation of beating the odds will hold true at least one more time.
"She is a fighter, she is a fighter, she can make it through anything," said Elmore.
The Sharps had some savings, but it all burned down with the home. A fund has been set up by the Greenbrier Mayor to help the family pay for medical bills. Donations can be made at any F&M bank under the name Martha Sharp.
Sharp was taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center and was in critical condition. She suffered first, second and third degree burns over 70 percent of her body.
Investigators did not give an official cause of the fire.
