Oct 6, 2008 6:46 pm US/Eastern
Two Young Boys Killed In Crafton Heights Fire
Mother Suffered Burns While Trying To Save Children
CRAFTON HEIGHTS (KDKA) ―
A fire in Crafton Heights killed two children and sent their mother to the hospital with burns on more than 30 percent of her body.
The fire started shortly after 1 a.m. in a house in the 700 block of Litchfield Street.
Moments after flames engulfed her home, 30-year-old Aisha White ran to a neighbor's house for help.
"She was crying and she had burns on her arms," January Waldo, the victims' neighbor, said. "Her daughter looked OK though. And then we came out, she was yelling, 'Fire' and her babies we came out and we saw the flames and I called 911."
William White, Jr., 10, and his 4-year-old brother Jordan were trapped inside.
"They were located on a second-floor bedroom. They were removed by fire crews when they were doing their primary search," Pittsburgh Fire Chief Darryl Jones said.
Verna Murphy, grandmother of the victims, is devastated.
"Right now I'm asking God, 'Why?'," she tells KDKA. "Right now, I'm questioning God and I've never questioned him before like I am now. So I need the prayers of everyone out there."
The boys' mother was burned while trying to save her children. Her young daughter, Page, survived.
"My daughter's very hard working, loving mother. There [were] three of them altogether," Murphy said. "She lost her husband last year to a fatal shooting and she's just one of the best moms you can ever want."
Investigators don't believe the fire was suspicious.
Aisha White was overheard asking about a candle in the home.
Smoke detectors were working inside the home.
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