MATHIAS, W.Va. — A man and four children died in a mobile home fire early Saturday morning in Hardy County.
According to the state Fire Marshal’s Office, the blaze was reported at about 5 a.m. on Woods Edge Road near the community of Mathias.
The victims include a 28-year-old man and four children, ages 1, 2, 3 and 5. The mother barely escaped the fire and is being treated for injuries in a Virginia hospital.
Deputy State Fire Marshal, chief investigator, Jason Baltic told MetroNews the mother was injured from the fire but was able to run next door to seek help from relatives.
“A couple of those family members ran over to the mobile home, they tried to get in through windows and such to attempt to get the children and adult male out. The fire, smoke and heat had just progressed so much they couldn’t even make it through the windows,” Baltic said.
The five victims all lived at the mobile home. Baltic said two of the children were the biological children of the man and woman and two others were from a previous relationship.
Baltic said fire will be ruled undetermined due to the severe amount of damage. He said it began in the living room. He said the family did use space heaters.
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“We do not know if that had anything to do with the cause. We were able to find the remnants of one in the living room area but there’s so much damage in that end of the mobile home there’s no way we can be sure if that’s what started the fire,” he said.
No smoke alarms were found among the debris.
Baltic said they eventually want to speak with the mother but it may be a while given the circumstances.
“We’re not sure when we’ll be able to do that and once we talk to her that will hopefully tell us some more but it may not. We still want to see if it does,” he said.
Baltic said local volunteer fire crews were on the scene quickly. He said responding crews and those on the scene for the investigation battled snow and icy conditions. He said the mobile home was located well off the main highway.
The bodies of the victims have been sent to the state Medical Examiner’s Office for autopsies and positive identification.
It was a very emotional scene, according to Baltic.
“Any time we lose a life it’s tragic but when we lose some many at one time, four of them being children, it’s horrible,” he said. “All way too young, it’s very tragic.”