2 Adults, 1 Child Found Dead After Homewood South Fire
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PITTSBURGH (KDKA) --- A fire official said two adults and one child were found dead in the aftermath of a fire early Wednesday morning in Pittsburgh's Homewood South neighborhood.
Crews were called to the scene near the corner of Brushton Avenue and the 7600 block of Bennett Street around 2:20 a.m. It was first reported by a police officer who was on routine patrol.
The house was fully involved in flames and smoke by the time the first firefighters arrived on the scene.
KDKA's Brenda Waters Reports:
Pittsburgh Fire Chief Darryl Jones said it was a chaotic scene when firefighters arrived.
"When I got here, my battalion chief told me it was very chaotic. Police were grabbing people, I don't know if it was family members or just neighbors in the neighborhood that was trying to help, but I can't say for sure it was family members trying to run back in," Chief Jones said.
Later, the bodies of two women and a 4-year-old girl were found in bedrooms on the second and third floors.
The Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office identifies those victims as 58-year-old Sandra Carter, 21-year-old Shamira Staten and 4-year-old Chy'enne Manning.
Neighbors said they're heartbroken after just seeing the victims the other night.
"A house is a house, but when you hear people lost their lives, that is a different story. And a baby and their mothers," a neighbor said.
After the fire was under control, police at the scene took two men and one woman into custody for questioning. However, sources says there were not arrests made.
KDKA's Meghan Schiller Reports:
Breaking: We now know 3 people have been taken into custody. We watched police put 2 men and a woman in back of patrol cars @CBSPittsburgh
— Meghan Schiller (@MeghanKDKA) December 20, 2017
A male jumped from a roof to escape the fire and injured his leg. He was taken to a local hospital in stable condition. He is identified on Facebook as Carter's son.
Officials have not commented on a possible cause for the fire. The investigation continues. In addition to the cause, officials are trying to find out whether the home had smoke detectors.
