Tuesday, February 10, 2015

THE YOUNG AND THE ELDERLY ARE THE MOST FREQUENT VICTIMS OF HOUSE FIRES: A 4-YR OLD DIES IN ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA HOUSE FIRE



 



THE YOUNG AND THE ELDERLY ARE THE MOST FREQUENT VICTIMS OF HOUSE FIRES: A 4-YR OLD DIES IN ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA HOUSE FIRE


February 9, 2015

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – 

A 4-year-old girl died Sunday night following a house fire in St. Paul.
According to the St. Paul Fire Department, the fire started around 8:30 p.m. in a first-floor bedroom of a home on 500 block of Jessamine Avenue. The flames quickly spread to a house next door.

Fire officials said a man in the first home was able to save his wife, mother and four of his children. But when he ran back into the home to save his 4-year-old daughter, the fire was too intense. He was overcome with smoke inhalation.

Firefighters said that the girl was pulled from the home, but she died at a hospital late Sunday night.

The girl’s uncle, Michael Yang, identified the victim as NtshiaLiag Yang. She had just celebrated her fourth birthday on Jan. 31.

Katie Kane, a neighbor, said she watched as the girl’s mother yelled for help.

“Six minutes after the flames were out, the firemen ran out of the house with this limp little 4-year-old in their hands,” she said. “And the mom went to the boulevard and just got down on her knees and started praying. And prayer is universal, so I went over there and bent down on that sidewalk and prayed with her, too.”

On Monday morning, Kane return to the scene of the fire with her own daughter in hand to pay respects at a memorial outside the burned house.
The girl’s uncle said the family had lived in the house for more than 20 years. He also said the girl’s father is still in the hospital, recovering from smoke inhalation.

Michael Yang said he told the father that it’s God’s blessing that he was able to save so many of his family members. He added that the family will always remember NtshiaLiag Yang as a child who loved to run around and smile.

“The family will be closer from now on,” he said.
Michael Yang said that one of the children was the first to notice the fire and ran upstairs to tell the father. He also said the family heard an explosion at some point and that, in the past, they’ve had problems with a circuit breaker.

The other children are OK, Yang said, and their mother was released from the hospital on Monday morning.

No one in the second house that caught fire suffered injuries.
The St. Paul Fire Marshal said crews have determined the fire started in a first floor bedroom, and they hope to have the cause determined by Tuesday.

The family of the girl has set up a memorial fund to help pay for funeral expenses and to get the family through this difficult time. Here’s how to donate to the Chialia Memorial Benefit Fund