12 People, Including 8 Children, Killed in Philadelphia Rowhouse Fire: 'Just Devastating'

Photo: Matt Rourke/AP/Shutterstock

A Pennsylvania community is reeling after an early morning fire on Wednesday claimed the lives of 12 people, including eight children.

Firefighters responded to the blaze just after 6:30 a.m. and found “heavy fire” coming from the front of the three-story residence located in Philadelphia’s Fairmount neighborhood, Craig Murphy, the Deputy Fire Commissioner of the Philadelphia Fire Department, said in anews conference.

“I just heard screams like at 6:30 in the morning, I don’t know if it came from the building or the street, that’s what initially woke me up,” a resident toldCBSN Philly. “The flames were huge.”

“You can’t really imagine something like this happening,” he said.

Eight people self-evacuated from the duplex, while two others — including a child — were taken to local hospitals, Murphy said during the news conference.

Police initially said that 13 people — including seven children — had been found dead, but later said that four adults and eight children died, bringing the total number of victims to 12. At the time of their initial remarks, Murphy said the number remained “dynamic,” as the recovery efforts were ongoing.

Officials have yet to release the names of the individuals killed in the fire, but family members have identified two of the victims as sisters Rosalee McDonald and Virginia Thomas, according to theAssociated Press. Family members also identified one of the victims to local NBC affiliateWCAUas 16-year-old boy Quintien Terrell Tate McDonald.

“The fire was extinguished, and it was terrible, it was terrible,” he said while fighting back tears at the news conference. “I’ve been around 35 years now and this was probably one of the worst fires I’ve ever been through.”

PHOTO: Matt Rourke/AP/ShutterstockPHOTO: Matt Rourke/AP/Shutterstock

“I don’t have the words right now for what we’re feeling as a community, and as a department,” he added.

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“This is without a doubt one of the most tragic days in our city’s history— loss of so many people in such a tragic way,” Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said at the Wednesday morning news conference.

“Please keep all these folks, especially these children, in your prayers,” he continued. “Losing so many kids is just devastating.”

source: people.com