4 dead, including 2 children, in Hartford house fire

HARTFORD, CT (WFSB) - Four people, including two children, were killed in a house fire in Hartford early Monday morning, fire officials confirmed.

The fire broke out on Shultas Place in the city’s south end around 2:30 a.m.

Shultas Place connects Wethersfield and Maple avenues near Bulkeley High School and not far from Hartford Hospital.

Fire officials say an 11-person family was living in the home.

Hartford fire Chief Rodney Barco said two adults and two children died, and three people were hospitalized. The people who were hospitalized had non-life-threatening injuries.

“This is a heartbreaking incident for the victims’ loved ones and the entire Hartford community. Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with the family during this incredibly difficult time. We mourn the loss of these lives and stand together in support as we begin to heal from this tragedy,” said Mario Oquendo, Jr. District Chief/Public Information Officer, Hartford Fire Department.

Barco also said a firefighter was hurt when he fell down some stairs; however, he was expected to be ok.

“Today, we mourn as a city. In the days ahead, we will continue to stand with the families affected and support our first responders who carry the weight of this tragedy as they return to serve our community,” said Hartford’s Mayor Arunan Arulampalam.

When Channel 3’s crew arrived to the scene, it saw flames shooting through the roof of the home.

“They were high. They were very very high. You could see the firefighters on the second floor,” said Awilda Burgos of Hartford.

Burgos said she lives across the street. She was awakened by people talking on her front steps.

“I asked them if they were ok, did they need anything,” she said. “They asked for a couple of bottles of water, but they looked very disturbed.”

She didn’t learn until later that some of those people were inside the home that went up un flames.

“It was so emotional seeing it, seeing them,” Burgos said. “You just knew.”

She said she watched from her front yard as the fire grew.

“It just kept spreading,” she said. “It was just going so fast.”

Fifty-four firefighters helped put out the flames.

They said wind in the morning made the job more difficult.

“It definitely became an issue once we opened up the roof and started knocking the fire down,” Barco said. “The wind started picking up and started fanning the flames so it made it more intense for us to do our job.”

Henrietta Beckman with Mothers United Against Violence stopped by the home on Monday to check on the family.

“As a mother, it’s very heartbreaking to hear that. Those children were probably getting ready to go to school, and now their lives have been taken,” Beckman said.

Reverend Henry Brown also stopped by the scene on Monday to pray for the survivors.

“You don’t want to see or hear anybody dying, but when it comes down to kids it’s especially hard. We’re trying to make sense of it. Right now, it’s mindboggling,” he said.

Another neighbor said he had to evacuate his home because of how large the fire grew. Smoke impacted the immediate area.

The neighbors who were displaced were handed blankets by firefighters. They sheltered on a bus that was brought in for them.

“When I heard about the four people, all I could imagine, I used to walk up the street and they used to always say ‘hi,’” Burgos said. “The kids used to be in the front playing. And in my heart as a mother, a grandmother, everything, that’s when it took me down.”

“They were nice. They were a beautiful family,” said Kevin Walker, a neighbor. “I feel sorry for the family.”

The American Red Cross helped relocate the survivors and their neighbor, whose house was also damaged.

As the day progressed, family and friends joined each other outside the home to build a memorial.

One family friend, Katiria Charles, says she has known the family for several years after her son dated one of the victims when they were teenagers.

The names of the victims have not yet been released, but Charles says 21-year-old KrystaLee Hernandez was killed along with her 25-year-old sister, 14-year-old sister, and her 3-year-old nephew.

“I think she went back to go save the other ones staying on the second and third floor. Tragically, she didn’t make it out,” Charles said. “She finished school, got a job, she got cars and everything. She was going to do cosmetology. She had her future. She was a good girl.”

Charles says KrystaLee lived with her family for 6 years before she moved back to be with her mom and other family members on Shultas Place.

“They were awesome. They were great,” said Charles. “KystaLee was a great aunt. She loved all her siblings, even her nephew. He was her world.”

Charles’ son goes to school with one of the boys who he says made it out.

“School starts next week, and she’s not going to be there. He’s going to be heartbroken and depressed. It’s hard seeing that,” Charles said.

Now, the family is leaning on one another to get through this tragedy.

“We just got to figure out how we’re going to bury them first and start from there,” said Charles. “Put them to rest, that’s all we’re worried about now.”

There was no word on what started the fire. Hartford police and the fire marshal are investigating.

Click HERE to donate to the family’s GoFundMe.

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