A toddler and a woman have died and multiple people have been injured in a “hellish” house fire in Ohio, it’s been reported.
Per CBS-affiliated stationWKRC, the fire chief described the scene as “hellish.”
“These citizens informed responding units that two individuals were still missing and not accounted for. Cincinnati firefighters mounted a heroic attempt to search outand assist the missing parties, but were ultimately forced out of the building as the fire grew,” the fire department added, per the release.
2 dead in Cincinnati house fire and 10 hospitalized, including 7 children.WKRC LOCAL12/Youtube
WKRC LOCAL12/Youtube
Firefighters “transitioned to an exterior attack” and it took approximately two hours to get the fire under control, the release confirmed.
“At that point, they began the painstaking process to locate the missing individuals. Several hours into the search, two deceased people were found, one female adult and one male infant,” the fire department added.
The Hamilton County Coroner’s Office identified the victims as Nyla Harrow, 21 and Jayceon McGee, 2, in an email to PEOPLE on Tuesday, March 11.
Ten other people, whose ages ranged from 3 months to 48 years old, had been injured in the blaze and were taken to hospital, per the fire department.
Cincinnati Fire Department (CFD).Andrew Cenci/Bloomberg via Getty
Andrew Cenci/Bloomberg via Getty
Among the 10 taken to the hospital, seven were children, per WKRC.
“While an initial assessment shows the cause was most likely accidental, the cause of the fire remains under investigation,” Sunday’s release stated.
“Approximately 80 firefighters responded to the incident. There were no other injuries to police officers or firefighters,” the release confirmed.
WKRC reported that dozens of friends and family members had since gathered to pay tribute to the victims, holding a balloon release.
Howard Curtis, whose stepdaughter Harrow died in the tragedy, told the crowd, “What I do on the count of three, I want everybody to say ‘I love,’ alright, really, this is what it’s all about; it’s about love, you all coming out here because you are showing us love for our losses. On the count of three, say ‘I love,’ one, two, three, ‘I love,’ " the outlet said in anInstagrampost.
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“I want everybody to say a prayer for them tonight and make everything right for everybody, and I’m glad that everybody came here and you all showed love to my babies, my grandbabies,” another family member said, per the station.
source: people.com