Early morning blaze kills 5 kids, 2 adults
HOUSE FIRE
Akron authorities have confirmed that five children and two adults died in a house fire early Monday in the city’s Sherbondy Hill neighborhood, saying it was one of the deadliest residential fires in the community’s history.
The cause of the blaze at the two-story home in the 600 block of Fultz Street remains under investigation.
The house was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived at the scene after 2:46 a.m. The porch and entire front of the house were charred.
Fire Chief Clarence Tucker said it was unclear whether there were working smoke alarms inside.
Officials at the scene declined to release the identities of the victims, but the victims were unofficially identified as Dennis Huggins and Angela Boggs, who both owned the home, and children Cameron Huggins, 1; Alivia Huggins, 3; Kylle Huggins, 5; Daisia Huggins, 6; and Jered Boggs, 14. Fire officials said the bodies still need to be positively identified.
Two women, apparently family members, drove up to the scene of the fire about 1:30 p.m. Monday. They jumped out of the car and began sobbing.
After talking to a fire investigator, they both started calling family members, crying as they relayed the sad news.
The fire is being investigated by Akron firefighters, city police and the State Fire Marshal’s Office.
Bob Sharp of the fire marshal’s office said there is no set timeline for the investigation. “It will take whatever it takes,” he said.
The three-bedroom home had been appraised at $30,430, according to Summit County property tax records.
Mayor Dan Horrigan issued a statement just before noon expressing his condolences.
“My deepest sympathies and prayers are with the family and loved ones of those who perished, and we pray for strength and healing in the difficult days to come,” he said. “We will see to it that the victims’ families are supported in this time of great sorrow and need.”
He also praised firefighters for quickly responding to the scene.
This is the second fire in six months in the Akron community that killed multiple people.
Two adults and two children died in December in a fire at a three-story home on East Tallmadge Avenue in the city’s North Hill neighborhood. That fire was blamed on unattended cooking in the kitchen.
Monday’s fatal fire also is the second one on the same block of Fultz within about a year. In April 2016, a man recovering from hip replacement surgery and his girlfriend died in a fire a few houses away.
That fire was investigated as a possible arson.
Paul Clegg, who lives next door to the site of Monday’s fire, said he wanted to know whether the blaze was accidental.
Clegg, who is deaf, said he was awakened by firefighters. He initially thought his own house was on fire and he even threw his four dogs out a window in an effort to get them to safety.
The siding on Clegg’s home was melted by the heat from the blaze next door.