UPDATE @ 4:32pm
Fire investigators tell WSAZ.com that the house had no working smoke detectors. Two of the victims were found upstairs and the other two were found downstairs.
We're told Meyleigh was Lea Ann's granddaughter. They were visiting Colby and Sandi.
The investigation into what started the fire is continuing.
UPDATE @ 2:34pm
The Portsmouth fire chief has released the names of the victims:
- Colby Lynch, 41 of Portsmouth
- Sandi Schalit, 53 of Portsmouth
- Lea Ann Woods, 53 of Westerville, OH
- Meyleigh Snipes, of Westerville, OH (age not released, but she was a juvenile)
ORIGINAL STORY
PORTSMOUTH, Ohio (WSAZ) -- The Portsmouth fire chief has confirmed that four people died in a downtown house fire Friday morning.
The chief also says that one of those killed was a young girl. She may be a pre-teen or even a young teenager. The others who died are two adult women and a man. They have not released their names.
The fire started at about 3:30 a.m. at a house in the 1500 block of 4th Avenue.
The fire is now out and the fire department has started its investigation. We know that the fire was contained to one bedroom and it had a lot of smoke. The rest of the house did not have fire damage.
A police officer drove by during his normal patrol Friday morning and was the first to notice the smoke and call for help.
A firefighter was also treated for smoke inhalation.
Firefighters did find a smoke detector. However, it was damaged and they may never know if it was working.
This is now the 12th fire fatality this year alone in Portsmouth.
WSAZ has a crew at the scene. Keep clicking on WSAZ.com for the latest information.
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