Two adults, two children and a dog were found dead in a barricaded home after a house fire in Seattle’s Wallingford neighborhood on Saturday morning.
KING reported that police were called to the home at about 8:45 a.m. after an 11-year-old girl escaped from the home, ran to a neighbor’s, and called for help. The initial report to police said there had been a shooting and that someone was dead in the home.
When officers arrived, they found the house fully engulfed in flames. They called for firefighters and tried to enter the house but found the door blocked.
“We do know that the front door was barricaded with some sort of object that officers were trying to kick down, to try and open up the front door,” said Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz. “There also was the fire going on, so they were overcome by the smoke so they ended up retreating.”
Firefighters arrived five minutes later and set to work extinguishing the blaze but were forced to do initial work from a distance because of the intensity of the fire.
After about 45 minutes, firefighters had the fire under control and entered the home, where they found two adults, a child, an infant, and a dog dead inside. Officials said one of the adults was found at the front of the building and the other at the back.
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Investigators have not yet determined the age of the victims or if the 11-year-old who called for help is related to the people inside. Diaz said she may have escaped through a window and had minor injuries that were treated by emergency medical personnel.
“Our hearts and prayers are with the child that is alive as well as those that are deceased,” said Diaz. “We are trying to make sure that the child does have a healthy recovery.”
Seattle police could not confirm or deny the initial report of a shooting, the Seattle Times reported. Police spokesperson Shawn Weismiller said he also could not confirm if officers found firearms in the home.
The Seattle Police Homicide Unit is handling the death investigation while arson investigators work to determine how the fire started.
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[Featured image: Seattle Fire Department/John Odegard]
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