News · Community · Wilmington, Delaware
Two dead, two firefighters hurt in Wilmington rowhome fire
Two people died and two firefighters were injured when fire tore through a three-story rowhome on 8th Avenue in Wilmington, Delaware, early Tuesday, according to reports from FOX 29, 6abc and NBC10.
The outlets gave slightly different times for when crews were called. 6abc reported the call came in just after 2:30 a.m., NBC10 put it at about 2:45 a.m., and FOX 29 said it was shortly after 3 a.m. 6abc placed the home in the unit block of 8th Avenue.
Wilmington Fire Chief John Looney said firefighters found flames throughout all three floors when they arrived, FOX 29 and NBC10 reported. 6abc said crews saw heavy fire on the second floor that spread through the roof.
According to NBC10, Looney said crews first went inside to attack the fire but pulled back to a defensive position after the second floor collapsed. 6abc reported that worries about the structure giving way led firefighters to leave the building and fight the fire from outside.
When firefighters were able to go back in, they found both residents of the home dead, NBC10 reported. "Through the course of this, we found two victims, two residents who both were deceased," Looney said, according to NBC10. Officials told 6abc the victims were found in a bedroom.
Officials did not release the victims' identities. A woman who said she was the sister of one victim told 6abc the two were Tanya Rogers and her husband, John Poteat. 6abc spelled the relative's name Sharon Osborne, while NBC10 spelled it Sharon Osburn. She told NBC10 the couple had been on the third floor.
"My sister is gone, she's gone, that's all I know," she told NBC10 at the scene.
Two firefighters suffered minor injuries, the outlets reported. NBC10 said both were taken to a hospital and that one had been treated and released by about 7 a.m. FOX 29 reported that both had been treated.
The fire was brought under control at about 5:10 a.m., according to NBC10.
The cause of the fire has not been determined and remains under investigation, all three outlets reported.
Compiled by True News from reporting by FOX 29 Philadelphia, 6abc Action News and NBC10 Philadelphia. Each outlet's original story is linked below.
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