Philadelphia, PA- Multi-Fatal Fire 12-7-06

[Truck4 48]

Date: 12-7-06

Time: 2130hrs

Location: 1300 block of South 56th St.

Departments: PFD

Description: (4) dead in 2-story rowhouse fire.

Writer: Truck4

Links:

http://www.nbc10.com/news/10487150/detail.html

Four people died in a row house fire Thursday night in Southwest Philadelphia, officials said.

A 4-year-old, an 8-year-old, a 17-year-old and a female adult possibly in her 40s died in the blaze, NBC 10's Mike Strug reported from the scene. Authorities were not yet confirming the ages.

One survivor escaped onto the porch roof and was rushed to a local hospital for treatment of a hand wound suffered while apparently trying to get back inside the row home, Strug reported.

Chopper 10 was over the fire on the 1300 block of South 56th Street, which broke out at about 9:30 p.m. and was reported under control at 10 p.m.

"The supervisors of the first responding said it was pretty horrific, fire rolling through the windows, a lot of chaos," said police Lt. John Walker. "There was a kid on the roof yelling that kids were still inside, and it's a pretty sad, tragic story."

One person was found dead inside the home, Walker said. Paramedics performed CPR on children en route to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, but they were pronounced dead, as was the adult rushed to University of Pennsylvania Hospital.

Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers said during a press briefing that the home's inside was completely burned out, and the cause of the fire was still under investigation.

After walking through the home, Ayers said he did not find a smoke detector on any level of the home.

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