By Katie Kennedy
The Advocate
OPELOUSAS, La. — A house fire Saturday in Opelousas claimed the lives of a mother and her two small children, Louisiana Fire Marshal Butch Browning said Sunday.
Opelousas Fire Department firefighters responded to a call at 710 S. Academy St. just before 6 p.m. to find more than half of the home engulfed in flames, Browning said.
Upon entering, firefighters found 23-year-old Brittney Sion and her 2-year-old daughter in the back bedroom, Browning said.
Her 3-year-old son Trimirron Stelly was in a nearby hallway, Browning said.
Investigators believe Brittney Sion was trying to get the children out of the house when she was overcome by the smoke and heat, Browning said.
Firefighters pulled the victims from the burning house and administered CPR, but all three were pronounced dead at a local hospital, Browning said.
Attempts to reach family members Sunday were unsuccessful.
Officials believe faulty electrical wiring caused the fire, but the exact cause is still under investigation, Browning said.
The house was not equipped with smoke detectors, Browning said.
“If your home does not have a working smoke detector, your family has less than a 40 percent chance of waking up in a fire,” Browning said.
Three other people died in Louisiana fires over the weekend, including a Florida man visiting a Denham Springs residence, Browning said.
Edward Young Easterly Jr., of Pensacola Beach, Fla., was asleep when a fire started about 6:30 a.m. Saturday at 329 Benton Road, Denham Springs, Browning said.
It appears Easterly, 61, never awoke during the fire and was pronounced dead at the scene, Browning said.
Easterly was visiting longtime friends and business associates, who were also in the residence at the time of the fire but managed to escape, Browning said.
Two other fatal fires, one in Shreveport and one in Westwego, were caused by occupants’ attempts to stay warm, Browning said.
Firefighters from the Caddo Fire District 2 responded to a mobile home fire at 4120 Rainer St., Shreveport, at 9:15 p.m. Friday to find the trailer fully engulfed in flames, Browning said.
Firefighters attempted to rescue Joseph Pipes, 49, but he died in the flames, Browning said.
Pipes was using a propane cooking burner to stay warm, and it caught materials nearby on fire, Browning said.
An unidentified man, believed to be homeless, died in a house fire at 844 Hooter Road, Westwego, just before 9 p.m. Friday, Browning said.
Investigators believe the man lit a fire within the building to stay warm as temperatures dropped to 27 degrees, Browning said.
Copyright 2010 Capital City Press
All Rights Reserved