4-Year-Old Boy Dies; His Brother, Mother Critically Injured In Pasadena Apartment Fire
PASADENA (CBSLA) — A 4-year-old boy was killed and his mother and younger brother were critically injured after a two-alarm fire erupted at an apartment in Pasadena on Wednesday afternoon.
People were reported trapped in a burning apartment in the 100 block of Washington Boulevard, near Marengo, at about 2 p.m.
The 4-year-old boy was declared dead on the scene and his 3-year-old brother was taken to a hospital in critical condition, according to a Pasadena Fire Department spokesperson. Their 29-year-old mother was also rushed to a hospital in critical condition.
The mother and son were later airlifted to a burn center for treatment for smoke inhalation and injuries, the spokesperson confirmed Thursday morning.
No names were immediately released.
Witnesses said the boys' mother ran out of the home screaming for help.
"She was just hollering and screaming and she had black smoke on her," Monique, a neighbor, told CBSLA. "I didn't really see burns but she was just yelling because one more baby was in the house."
The fire occurred on the ground floor of a two-story apartment building. At least two units were damaged. Cell phone video showed flames shooting out of the apartment. More than 50 firefighters rushed to the scene.
"I saw them holding a little baby and he had burns on his arms, and then they started splashing water on him, and that's when you start to see him moving because he wasn't moving at first and then he started moving his arms," Monique said. "He was in pain."
The cause and circumstances of the fire remain under investigation.
"It hurts," an emotional Pasadena Battalion Chief Wendell Eaton said. "You have to hold back the emotion now, because I've seen it too many times. One time is enough, and after you've seen it over the years, it weighs pretty heavily on folks."
