KALAMAZOO, MICHIGAN: Evelyn Blackport, 4, and Elliot James Blackport, 7, died in a Michigan house fire early morning on October 9. Two other people, one adult and one child, managed to escape the burning building, said authorities.
According to Associated Press, firefighters and emergency personnel were dispatched to the single-family home on the 1500 block of East Stockbridge Avenue at about 2 am. When they arrived at the scene, the fire was raging on the first floor and spread fast to the second floor.
The bodies of the deceased children were later found inside, the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety said in a news release. The victims were later identified as Evelyn and Elliot.
Neighbors witnessed the deadly fire
Ciara Coleman, who lives a few houses down, told MLive, "I noticed the house was engulfed in flames."
She knew the family that lived there by their faces and not their names.
It took over an hour for the firefighters to extinguish the fire. Coleman said that the citizens attempted to rescue the children and put out the fire. One neighbor used a fire extinguisher and another attempted to go inside through the front porch.
A woman, who was identified as the children’s mother, tried to go inside but was stopped by firefighters.
The screaming and crying of the parents at the tragedy were traumatizing to witness, mentioned Coleman, and she eventually went back to her own house because her lungs hurt from the smoke.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation
It appears that the fire was caused by an accident, officials informed the Associated Press.
In a press statement, the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety said, "This is an unfortunate tragedy and KDPS would like to extend its sincerest condolences to the victims and families."
Later in the day, neighbor Crystal Baldwin left a stuffed animal in front of the burned home to remember the victims.
Speaking with NBC station WOOD, Baldwin said, "I only can imagine what the mom’s feeling right now. I didn’t even want to go back to sleep last night. I wanted to make sure, you know, them babies were OK, and waking up this morning, they’re not.”
The family had reportedly resided in the neighborhood for a month.
