Three people are dead, and two people are injured, including a child, from an early morning house fire in southeast Columbus near Reynoldsburg.
Columbus firefighters and police officers responded shortly after 2 a.m. Nov. 18 to a house fire in the 2900 block of Freedom Trail near Gender Road, Columbus Division of Fire Battalion Chief Jeffery Geitter said.
Two men and a woman died from the fire, Columbus police Sgt. Joe Albert confirmed. Two of the victims were removed from the home earlier on; the third victim was found by firefighters on the second floor. All three were pronounced dead at the scene.
A woman and a young child were injured when they escaped from an upper-floor window of the split-level home, Geitter said. The child was dropped or thrown, Geitter said, and the woman jumped from the window.
The child was taken to Nationwide Children’s Hospital in critical condition, while the woman was taken to Mount Carmel East Hospital in stable condition, Geitter said.
Columbus police officers at the scene declined to confirm any details about the incident. The Columbus police homicide unit remained at the home through the morning. Geitter said the cause of the fire remains under investigation and arson investigators were on the scene.
Sgt. Albert said at about 10 a.m. Nov. 18 that police were working with Columbus Division of Fire arson investigators to determine whether foul play could be involved in the fire.
Fraternal Order of Police Capital City Lodge #9 President Brian Steel, also a Columbus police sergeant, said it’s common for arson and homicide teams to respond to fatal fires regardless of whether foul play is initially suspected.
Firefighters were called to the home at 2:17 a.m., Geitter said. One fire engine remained on scene until just before 7 a.m., when a Dispatch reporter observed it leaving.
Geitter said four fire engines, three ladder trucks, one rescue unit, two medics, an EMS supervisor and two battalion chiefs responded to the fire. He said that was a typical response for a residential fire.
Firefighters and police remained at the scene of the split-level home as of 7:40 a.m. Nov. 18. The final tanker truck left the scene as of 7 a.m. A reporter at the scene observed a busted-out window on the house and smoke residue around the others. A pile of clothes and furniture sat in the front yard.
Felicia Gowdy, who lives near the home, said she saw the family who lives there at garage sales and similar events, but didn’t personally know them. She said they have a young girl, possibly 2 or 3 years old.
“It was a nice family,” Gowdy said. “A good family.”
Gowdy learned of the fire later in the morning when she woke up. She saw the emergency personnel on her video camera.
“It’s sad,” Gowdy said. “No time is the right time … but come on, it’s the holiday time, and it’s a family. It’s hard.”
Public Safety and Breaking News Reporter Bailey Gallion can be reached at bagallion@dispatch.com.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: ‘A good family.” Three dead, two injured in Columbus house fire
Reporting by Bailey Gallion, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
