A Christmas tree that was set on fire caused [https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/world/459111/at-least-13-people-including-7-children-killed-in-philadelphia-fire a blaze in a Philadelphia apartment building that killed a dozen people, including eight children, last week, the city's top fire official said Tuesday, citing preliminary findings of an investigation.
Firefighters at the scene of the blaze in Philadelphia. Photo: 2022 Getty Images
Philadelphia Fire Commissioner Adam Thiel, detailing early results from the probe, said investigators have ruled out all other possibilities. They also found seven smoke alarms in the apartment failed to go off, while just one was activated, which came late, he said.
"We believe with certainty, so 99 to 100 percent confidence, that the first item ignited in this blaze was a Christmas tree on the second floor of the home," Thiel said at a news conference, adding that a lighter was found nearby.
A five-year-old, who is one of just two survivors, was the only person on the second floor at the time that the tree was ignited, he added.
"We are left with the words of that 5-year-old child, that traumatised 5-year-old child, to help us understand how the lighter and the tree came together with tragic consequences," Thiel said.
The fire broke out around 6.30 am (local time) last Wednesday on the second floor of a three-storey row house in the city's Fairmont neighbourhood. The building is owned by the federally funded Philadelphia Housing Authority, the fourth-largest housing authority in the United States.
The catastrophe - along with a fire in New York City on Sunday that claimed the lives of 17 people, including eight children - has stirred questions on safety standards in low-income city housing in the United States.
Philadelphia fire officials said the building was overcrowded, with 26 inside a structure meant to accommodate two families.
The tragedy has raised concerns about safety standards in low-income city housing in the US. Photo: 2022 Getty Images
Conflicting accounts emerged about the building's smoke detectors. Fire department officials said four smoke detectors were installed in the building and had last been inspected in 2020. Dinesh Indala, executive vice president at the Philadelphia Housing Authority, told reporters there were six devices last inspected in May 2021.
- Reuters