A woman and girl were killed while a man and boy were injured in a house fire in Philadelphia early Saturday morning. Neighbors have identified them as a family of four who recently immigrated from Venezuela and lived with another couple and a man from Guatemala.
The fire started at a home on the 900 block of Granite Street around 7:30 a.m. and spread to a second home.
Officials said a 31-year-old woman and an 8-year-old girl were found dead on the second floor of one of the homes that caught fire.
A 32-year-old man and a 9-year-old boy managed to escape the home and were taken to the hospital where they are being treated for third-degree burns, officials said.
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A second man, 28, suffered a burn to his hand, police said.
The young boy suffered severe burns to his arms, legs and back, police said. He is listed in critical condition in the hospital.
The man in his thirties is listed in critical condition at the hospital with burns to his face and neck, according to police.
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Police said that there was another adult man who ran from the scene and his current whereabouts are unknown at this time.
Animal control told NBC10 that they found two dead kittens inside the home.
Investigators said there were no smoke alarms in the home where the fire started.
Officials have not revealed the cause of the fire. They continue to investigate.
The incident is the second deadly fire in Philadelphia in the past two days.
"It's sad, especially this time of year. It's not routinely, historically, something that we deal with in the summer months. People are up," Philadelphia Assistant Fire Chief Rob Wilkins said. "They're aware of what's going on. But yeah, it's a sad time of year for us and the community at large."
Neighbors are planning a vigil for Sunday, Aug. 24 at 6 p.m. and are asking anyone in the community to bring donations in an effort to help the victims of the fire.
Neighbors react to deadly fire
A neighboring home to the left was also damaged in the fire, but no injuries have been reported in connection to that house, Wilkins said.
Video captured the moments a good Samaritan who lived across the street helped the father and son escape from the burning home.
He is the father of Jahaira Castro and was too distraught to speak on camera because he said he wasn't able to save the mother and the daughter.
"He feels like he's not a hero, but I told him he's a hero," Castro said. "He's very devastated, devastated, you know he says the only thing he hears is the little girl and the mom yelling, asking for help and he couldn't help him because it was too late already. The ceiling had collapsed down."
The neighbor who lives on the other side of where the fire happened, Sade Williams, spoke with NBC10 as crews were working on Saturday morning and said that she woke up her family to get everyone outside.
"It was a lot of flames," Williams said. "It was blazing."
NBC10's Siobhan McGirl told her about the two people who died and the other two who were hurt from the fire and Williams explained how it made her feel sad saying, "I can’t believe this. That’s a shame."
Another neighbor said that she lives three houses down. Genesis Martinez said that she heard someone yelling early this morning so she woke everyone up in her home and got everyone to leave.
"It’s devastated. It’s an eye-opener. Things like that have to happen for you to realize this could be you," Martinez said.
She also told NBC10 that she left everything behind and this is a learning experience for her family to always be careful.
This story is developing. Check back for updates.
