4 kids among 5 dead in Baltimore rowhouse fire

BALTIMORE An intense fire that ripped through a row house in northeast Baltimore early Thursday has claimed the lives of an adult and four children, a fire official said.

Fire department spokesman Chief Kevin Cartwright says firefighters were called around 2 a.m. Thursday and arrived to find heavy fire and smoke coming from the first floor of the home.

"This was literally an inferno," Cartwright said.

Cartwright says firefighters suppressed the heavy fire conditions and found the bodies of five people during a search and rescue operation. He says the victims are believed to be a grandmother and four grandchildren.

One person jumped from a second-floor window to escape the blaze, Cartwright said. He was taken to a hospital for treatment.

A firefighter was also injured when he fell through the second floor of the home into the basement. He was taken to a hospital in stable condition.

Officials are investigating the cause of the fire.