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Philadelphia Fire in Fairmount Rowhouse 18 people killed

Source: Manwell / Philadelphia Fire in Fairmount  killed

This early morning, a Philadelphia rowhouse in Fairmount experienced a tragic fire which left at least 12 people dead, 8 of which were children and two people are in critical condition.

Firefighters arrived to the three-story rowhouse on  North 23rd Street in Fairmount at around 6:40 a.m. This area is a little in between the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Temple University.

“It was terrible,” Philadelphia Deputy Fire Commissioner Craig Murphy said. “This is probably one of the worst fires I ever been to.”

Tragic Philly House Fire: How to Help the Victims & Families

The house was so engulfed in flames and the fire was so out of control that it took the firefighters about 50 mins to get the fire under control.

Firefighters revealed that the damage of the fire was mainly contained to only one of the rowhouses in the neighborhood.

The urban block is just a 15-minute walk from the Philadelphia Museum of Art, home of the famed “Rocky” steps, and a little more than one mile south of Temple University.

“This is without a doubt one of the most tragic days in our city’s history — lost of so many people in such a tragic way,” Mayor Jim Kenney said at the start of a news conference late Wednesday morning.

“Losing so many kids is just devastating. … Keep these babies in your prayers,” Kenney said.

As this story continues to develop, we send our prayers and support to the 12 people who lost their lives in this tragic fire.

New Updates of January 6, 2022:

As Firefighters entered the house engulfed in flames, they moved fast to a second-floor kitchen and a stairway connecting the second and third floors. In that mission, they were able to rescue one child but that child however did not survive, as reported in a statement last night, Wednesday.

“There was heavy fire,” First Deputy Fire Commissioner Craig Murphy said earlier. “… That fire was moving. It’s feeding on contents, it’s feeding on oxygen and it’s feeding on fire.”

Mayor Kenny said, “This is without a doubt one of the most tragic days in our city’s history, the loss of so many people in such a tragic way.”

It appeared that most of the damage was contained to one building in the densely populated residential neighborhood.

The rowhouse is owned and operated by the Philadelphia Housing Authority, the city said.

“I don’t have the words for how we’re feeling right now as a community and as a department,” Murphy said.

The cause of the fire has not yet been determined but it is under investigation and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is also on the case to help determine what exactly caused the tragic fire.

“We plan on and intend on getting a cause for this fire,” First Deputy Fire Commissioner said. “We plan on making sure that this tremendous loss life did not happen in vain.”

What is also very surprising is the amount of people confined to one area. Eight people lived between the first and second floor and 18 resided in the second and third floors.

The rowhouse is owned and operated by the Philadelphia Housing Authority, the city said.

“That is a tremendous amount of people to be living in a duplex,” Murphy said.

The house was under was operating under the Philadelphia Housing Authority and if you are from Philly you understand that typically most houses under PHA are for low income families. The could be a plethora of reasons of why so many people were living under one roof. It could be families that were opening their arms to other family members and friends or it could have been from not financially being able to provide a bigger living area.

President Joe Biden and the White House was notified about the tragic fire in Philadelphia.  Jill Biden tweeted, “My heart is with the families and loved ones of the victims of the tragic fire in Philadelphia.”