FORT SMITH -- A 3-year-old girl died after a fire in the Fort Smith family home early Tuesday, authorities said.
Her three siblings, as well as their 30-year-old mother, suffered life-threatening injuries.
The fire started at approximately 3 a.m. Firefighters and police officers responded to a call about a structural fire in the 800 block of North 35th Street, according to a news release by Fort Smith police. They found the four children and their mother inside of the home, authorities said.
Police said that the children, all of whom were under 11 years old, were flown to Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock for treatment, and the 3-year-old died.
Their mother was in a local hospital's intensive care unit early Tuesday afternoon, according to authorities.
Carol Lewis, a neighbor, said she noticed the fire at about 3 a.m. when her brother-in-law, Charles Lewis, told her about it.
Charles Lewis said he was getting ready for bed when he heard a noise outside. He thought somebody was stealing something off of his porch, but when he went out to investigate, he saw that the house was on fire.
"I was just wondering if the people were home or not," Charles Lewis said.
The fire started in the living room, though the cause has yet to be determined, according to Fire Marshal Teddy Abbey.
The structure sustained about 30% loss of value because of the fire, Abbey said, while the contents of the structure sustained about 75% loss of value.
An investigation is ongoing, police said.
Metro on 11/20/2019