DETROIT -- Flames and smoke roared through a wooden frame home Wednesday on the East Side, killing seven children who had been left alone in the house, fire department officials said.
'I can't give much information because (fire) companies are still on the scene,' said Senior Fire Chief R. Teipeo. 'But, there were seven fatalities.'
The victims ranged in age from 7 months to 9 years, and included four boys and three girls, authorities said. Names of the victims were not immediately released.
Fire fighters were 'hampered' in their efforts to fight the blaze on Mack Avenue near Chene Street because the single-story home had metal bars on the inside of the windows and on the outside of an entrance door, Teipeo said.
Authorities said the parents were not home when the blaze occurred.
The children were taken to Childlren's Hospital but were dead on arrival, authorities said.
The fire was believed to have started in the kitchen, authorities said. The seven victims were found in the living room.
When asked if any one else was in the home when the fire began around 2:45 p.m., Teipeo, at first, said all he could confirm was that there were seven children inside. Later, authorities said the children were alone.
Fire investigators said because the house was so fortified by the metal bars that it would have been impossible for even adults to get outside of the home.
Harold Watkins, the city's fire department chief, called the fire a 'terrible, terrible tragedy.'
When firefighters first arrived at the scene, they were not fully aware there were children inside the house, officials said. They worked quickly to extinguish the fire but because of the metal bars, they were unable to gain access quickly.
Once inside, 'they made the gruesome discovery,' Watkins said, referring to the children.
An unidentified neighbor described the residents of the house as 'a very loving family.'
Cause of the blaze and a damage estimate were not immediately available. Members of the fire department's arson squad were investigating, a routine procedure.
