PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A fire ripped through a home in Northeast Philadelphia Saturday morning, killing two people, including a child, and injuring at least three others.
Officials say it happened on the 900 block of Granite Street around 7:30 a.m.
Jahaira Castro lives across the street.
She said her dad was on their porch drinking a cup of coffee when he jumped into action.
“Him and somebody, they broke the door down. He said he saw the couch on fire and he said it was a big ball of smoke,” Castro said.
When inside, her dad saw a boy and man fall down the steps — he ushered them to safety.
But he couldn’t save everyone.
“When he tried to run up the stairs to survive the wife and daughter, he said it was too late. Everything started collapsing down,” Castro explained.
Officials say a total of six people were inside — a 31-year-old woman and an 8-year-old girl, both of whom died; a 9-year-old boy and a 32-year-old man who are in critical condition; and a 28-year-old man whose hand was burned.
Police say another man fled the scene. His whereabouts are unknown.
Investigators said there were no smoke alarms in the home where the fire started.
This is the second deadly fire in Philadelphia in two days.
Fire Chief Rob Wilkins told our newsgathering partners at NBC10 that fires like these aren’t normal.
“Especially this time of year, it’s kind of unexpected," he said. "It’s not routinely or historically something that we deal with in the summer months.”