4-year-old dead after Elizabeth Township house fire
A 4-year-old is dead after a house fire in Elizabeth Township.
The Elizabeth Township community is in mourning after flames ripped through the home on Parkvue, where a mom lived with her three children. Their pastor said the youngest, a 4-year-old boy, died at the hospital from injuries sustained in the fire.
The Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office has identified the boy as Zyaire Akins. His 18-year-old sister remains in the hospital, recovering from severe bruises.
Ebenezer Baptist Church Pastor Rudolph Woods is still processing what happened early Monday morning, down the road from his place of worship.
"It's just a devastating, heartbreaking thing to have to find out," Woods said. "Such a loss, such a loss."
Fire Chief Adam Janosko said the house went up in flames just after 12:30 a.m.
"First engine arrived on scene to a pretty voluminous fire," Janosko said.
Firefighters said the mom and her preteen son got out unharmed, and her 18-year-old daughter jumped out the back window. However, her 4-year-old son was still inside. Crews struggled to reach him due to hoarding conditions in the home.
"Access inside the residence was pretty difficult, probably knee-deep in debris," Janosko said.
Eventually, they reached him, with EMS taking him to the hospital. Woods said the kids' grandfather told him the boy died at Children's. The 18-year-old is recovering from severe bruising at the hospital.
"When he would come into the church, my eyes would always lighten up. My heart would always brighten up just seeing him, just interacting with him, just, beautiful child," Woods said.
Woods is devastated for a family he's gotten to know every week at church, and is going to do whatever he can to help them get through this challenging time.
"Trying to bring the community together and keep the family strong and bound together," Woods said.
The Allegheny County fire marshal is investigating the cause.
Editor's note: A previous version of this story said the victim was a girl. The story has been updated based on new information from authorities.