Gary Couple, Married 60 Years, Dies In Fire

click to expand

GARY, Ind -- An elderly Northwest Indiana couple, married for 60 years, were killed when their home caught fire over the weekend. Two family members were also injured.

The fire broke out in their home at 47th and Delaware shortly after midnight on Saturday.

Joella and Isiah Hunter (picture provided to CBS)

Neighbors and family tell CBS 2's Lauren Victory that the two -- identified as Joella and Isiah Hunter -- did everything together.

"They looked just like two teenagers, just enjoying one another like they were on a first date," grandson Isiah Hunter tells CBS 2's Lauren Victory.

The couple died of smoke inhalation. Joella Hunter was 83; her husband, Isiah, was 85.

Family members say the focus now is on two other relatives: 19-year-old Antri and 15-year-old Titi Sease, who were visiting their great-grandparents. The brother and sister were rushed to the hospital with smoke-inhalation injuries.

A space heater in the basement caused the fire, Gary Fire Department officials say.