When I got pregnant while I was working full time, I was able to work with my incredibly understanding boss who, even pre-COVID, allowed me to come into the office two days and work from home the other three. I secured my son a spot three days per week at a local day care center and naively believed I could juggle having him home and working. I soon discovered how wrong I was, but unfortunately, the day care couldn’t take him full time.
I began to explore my other options, checking out in-home day cares and interviewing a few dozen nannies. I’ll be honest, the in-home day cares were almost an immediate no. Although I am sure tons of correctly certified, well-trained individuals are out there, I couldn’t shake the feeling that this was a dangerous option. I later found out one of the places I considered was actually unlicensed and I swore them off for good. Even though some parents can’t really afford another option, they are largely a cautionary tale.
A South Carolina woman found that out on March 12, 2026. Janaina Pio Ferreira, who had been operating an illegal day care in South Carolina, had left eight children in her care unsupervised that day when the unthinkable happened.
It was mid-afternoon when a fire broke out.
According to a North Charleston Police Department news release shared by Law & Crime, firefighters were called to Ferreira’s apartment complex when a structure fire was reported about 2:30 p.m.
“When emergency crews arrived, they discovered eight juveniles inside the apartment without adult supervision,” the release states. “Officers were told the fire suppression system put out the fire before firefighters arrived. No injuries were reported.”
Ferreira arrived back at the apartment a short time later with more children in tow. Authorities then deduced she was running an illegal day care out of her home and had left the children without supervision.
Ferreira was taken into custody and charged with eight counts of unlawful conduct toward a child.
“The North Charleston Fire Department conducted their investigation and concluded that the fire was due to a faulty aftermarket knob to the stove,” the police department’s news release noted. “NCPD and NCFD are currently collaborating on an ongoing investigation.”
According to a report by ABC 4, authorities believe a child left a bookbag on top of the stove that caught fire after a faulty knob was tampered with.
“Kids, sometimes play with fire, sometimes they play with stoves, sometimes they turn on stoves,” NCFD Chief Deputy Christian Rainey told the outlet. “We could have been having a totally different talk today — a totally different story.”
Ferreira is being held at a $200,000 bond and is scheduled to appear in court on May 1, 2026.
In-home care is a controversial topic among parents.
In South Carolina, more than 185,000 kids were in some sort of legal child care situation, both in facilities and in-home care, and no deaths were reported, according to the SC Division of Early Care and Education. From 2009 to 2025, a total of 10 deaths happened in child care facilities versus 21 deaths in illegally operated facilities.
I’m not a betting woman, but if I were, my money isn’t on an unlicensed care provider.
