Pennsylvania house fire kills 10 people, including 3 children
Seven adults and three children were killed in a fire that destroyed a two-story home early Friday morning, officials in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, said.
Firefighters and other emergency responders were dispatched to the scene in Nescopeck County just after 2:30 a.m. Friday and found the house on fire with people trapped inside, Pennsylvania State Police, Central Lieutenant Derek Felsman said.
“Firefighters tried to bravely enter the house in the back, but were repelled by the spreading fire and heat,” Felsman said.
According to Pennsylvania State Police, the children killed in the fire were two boys, ages 5 and 6, and a 7-year-old girl. The adult victims ranged in age from 19 to 79.
Three adults turned it out alive, police said.
Nescopeck Volunteer Firefighter Harold Baker told local news outlets he was one of the first responders at the home, and quickly realized it belonged to members of his family. .
“I also lost my son, daughter, grandson, two other grandchildren in there, my father-in-law, brother-in-law and sister-in-law. All of them were lost,” Baker told ABC affiliate WNEP.
“I couldn’t go in there to save them. That was the biggest thing for me. I couldn’t go in there to save them,” Baker said.
Baker said 14 people were in the home, including several who were visiting at the time of the fire. He also said there are 13 dogs in the house; Their conditions were not reported.
Felsman said the State Police are leading the investigation into the cause of the fire.