Child loses mom, siblings after fire rips through apartment, Mississippi officials say
A fire tore through an apartment in Mississippi early Friday, killing a mother and two children. Another child survived the blaze but remains hospitalized.
Jackson Fire Department officials confirmed three people died in a fire at the Pine Ridge Garden Apartments.
Crews arrived just before 8:30 a.m. and worked to contain the flames in a second-floor apartment in Building P, fire officials said. Four people were inside, including a mother and infant found dead.
Two other children were rushed to a hospital for treatment, officials said. One of the children later died at a hospital.
The surviving child was airlifted to a hospital in Georgia for additional treatment.
Firefighters safely put out the flames and are now working to determine what started the fire, officials said.
None of the victims’ names have been released.
“We ask that your community please pray for this grieving family, and also pray for the mental well-being of our firefighters,” Division Fire Chief Cleotha Sanders said in a statement.
Data shows fires are most likely to occur in a residence and account for 75% of fire-related deaths, according to the U.S. Fire Administration. Texas, California and New York led the U.S. in fire deaths in 2018, while Mississippi was among states with the most deaths per million people.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
This story was originally published February 26, 2021 at 1:18 PM with the headline "Child loses mom, siblings after fire rips through apartment, Mississippi officials say."