By John Cox
The Bakersfield Californian
KERN COUNTY, Calif. — Five people, all but one of them minors, died in a residential fire Thursday in Aerial Acres near Edwards, the Kern County Fire Department reported.
A KCFD news release said calls started coming in shortly after midnight, prompting a response by close to two dozen firefighters from Kern County, Edwards Air Force Base and California City.
Firefighters arrived to find a structure in the 18200 block of Claymine Road fully involved with fire and the building behind it about 50% involved. Homes on both sides were threatened by the flames, the release said.
The scene was described as chaotic with neighbors gathered around outside offering conflicting information. KCFD said three minors and one adult were able to escape uninjured but it was not immediately clear whether people were still inside the residence.
Complicating the response was the fact that live electric lines had fallen, posing hazards to firefighters and concerned citizens who were trying to aid in the response. First responders, including the California Highway Patrol, summoned additional firefighting resources and ambulances.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
None of the victims have been officially identified. But a woman living in Bellflower posted on the fundraising website Gofundme.com that her sister, three nieces and one nephew died in the fire.
“I lost 5 people I loved that night,” wrote the person who posted the note, Chloe Howard, “and with such a tragic unexpected accident, my family and I are suffering in the end.”
Howard is asking for financial help so she can pay to cremate the remains of all five. The request can be viewed online at https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-chloe-after-tragic-family-loss?cdn-cache=0.
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