KANSAS CITY, Mo. — One-year-old twins were killed Thursday in a fire at a KC home they just moved into a few weeks ago.
The deadly fire happened around 1:44 p.m. at a home near Woodland Avenue and East 35th Street. The home is owned by World Harvest Ministries, who was helping the family during a time of need.
A 23-year-old woman got out of the home with four siblings believed to be under the age of 10 with her and then started screaming for help.
“She was like, ‘My baby in there, my baby in there,'” one witness told FOX4.
“By the time we looked through the window and smelled the smoke, it was already ablaze,” neighbor Leah Massey said.
Firefighters arrived within minutes and started what they called an aggressive attack of the fire inside the home. There was nothing they could do to save the twins, a boy and a girl.
“We’re just so sad to hear the loss of the children,” fellow church member Linda Braxton said.
The Red Cross brought stuffed animals to try to comfort the children who survived. Their older sister was taken to the hospital to help her cope with the loss.
“So close to the holidays, I was thinking everyone got out and this was the least of their worries that their house had caught on fire. But that children actually died just really struck me because I have my own kids,” Massey said.
Neighbors said they’d seen people fixing up the home this fall. The family reportedly just moved in around Thanksgiving.
“It just was a situation that came about, and we had to step in and try to help. No one would have expected anything like this to happen. There are no words,” Erika Glenn said.
Glenn is listed as Lady Erika Glenn on the banner that hangs on the church just two buildings from the fire. She tried to offer some words of comfort, as the children’s mother returned home to the scene of the tragedy about three hours later.
“God is still God. He makes no mistakes. We don’t understand the reasons behind why things like this happen. We are just prayerful for the family to be comforted in this time,” Glenn said.
Firefighters said it will likely be at least next week when they’re able to release any details on how the fire might have started.
