Three children die in fire

Fires in Belize City are fairly common and fortunately most of the time the residents get out alive. But on Saturday night three little children were not so lucky. Reports to News Five are that they were left home alone and that candles may have been burning in the apartment. News Five spoke to Fire Chief Henry Baizar about the tragedy on Tibruce Street.

Henry Baizar, Fire Chief

“The western section of the house was already in flames, both upstairs and the downstairs. And on arrival we were told that two children were still in the house so we concentrated all of our resources where they said these two children were. We got two guys into their apparatus and everything and sent them into the building.”

Shortly after the firemen entered the building a butane gas tank blew up engulfing the entire house in flames. The firemen had no choice but to come out and fight the blaze from the street. Later they made their gruesome discovery.

Henry Baizar

“After we got the fire out we found two bodies in the building on the bed so we presumed that they were sleeping and the smoke overcame them and they died before we got there. Prior to that this house is an upstairs and downstairs wooden structure. One family lives upstairs: Ms. Armstrong with her eleven year old son. Downstairs is separated into two apartments. One of her sons lives in one side and the daughter lives in the other side.”

Armstrong told police that she yelled to find out if anyone needed anything from downstairs before she went to bed. She said she heard someone talking and when she looked outside she saw her daughter and common-law husband walking through the gate. The grandmother later went to sleep and was awakened by loud screams coming from the children.

Henry Baizar

“When she woke up she smelled smoke, she hurried down the stairs under the verandah and saw the little girl by the window. She pulled her through the window. She thought her brother was downstairs and she started yelling Allan, Allan! Eventually he answered. She said come let me take you out. She tried to hold on to him but he slipped because his skin was already burned and he urged him to get up and try again. He got up and she wrapped him up in a sheet off the line and put him down.”

Baizar says that Armstrong was unable to go around the house and take out the other children because of the flames. He says that since electrical wiring has been ruled out they are looking at other angles.

Henry Baizar

“We still have our other people out there. They have been out there for the past couple of days trying to take statements from people. We know exactly where the fire started. We know that it is not electrical fire because we have ruled that out. We have gotten statements from people who say from time to time that they see candles lit in one of the apartments downstairs. We are looking to make sure that it started from that.”

Hyacinth Latchman for News Five.

Baizar told News Five fire fighters could not open the door to the house because a heavy table had been jammed against the door, presumably to keep the children inside. Two year old Isandra Logan, and one year old Tisandra Logan died in the blaze. Four year old Alden Logan Martinez died this morning at the K.H.M.H. Police say they are treating the case as a homicide and awaiting word from the Director of Public Prosecutions to press charges against Tiffany Ferguson, Isaac Logan and Vanessa Logan who allegedly left the children alone in the two downstairs apartments.