CONROE, Texas (AP) - The Latest on a deadly house fire north of Houston (all times local):
5:20 p.m.
Authorities say a house fire north of Houston has killed two brothers and their sister and injured another brother, their grandparents and an uncle.
The fire broke out around 4 a.m. Friday near Conroe (KAHN’-roh). Investigators say police tried to reach the second floor to rescue children but were driven back as flames engulfed the home.
The Montgomery County Fire Marshal’s Office said the children who died were 13-year-old Terrance “TJ” Mitchell, 6-year-old Kaila Mitchell and 5-year-old Kyle Mitchell.
Their 10-year-old brother was rescued but injured. His condition hasn’t been released.
Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston says the children’s grandfather and uncle are in serious condition, while their grandmother is in good condition. All suffered smoke inhalation and burns.
Three police officers also suffered smoke inhalation and lacerations.
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10 a.m.
A fire official says police officers attempted to reach the second floor of a burning Houston-area home to rescue children who were trapped but were driven back by flames that engulfed the structure.
Three children ranging in age from 6 to 13 were killed in the fire near Conroe (KAHN’-roh) that broke out around 4 a.m. Friday. A 10-year-old boy was hospitalized in critical condition with severe burns.
Montgomery County Fire Marshal Jimmy Williams says two Shenandoah police officers were the first to arrive and helped members of an extended family escape the home. But Williams says heat and flames prevented the officers from climbing a stairwell to reach the children who died.
The officers were hospitalized for smoke inhalation and other injuries. A third officer with another department also was hurt.
Other members of the family were hospitalized with injuries.
The home collapsed and the flames spread to adjacent buildings, including to another home that was destroyed.
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8:15 a.m.
A sheriff’s official says three children have died in a house fire north of Houston and three members of the same family are critically injured.
Montgomery County sheriff’s Lt. Scott Spencer says the children who died ranged in age from 6 to 13 years. He earlier said the youngest was 7.
Spencer says the children’s bodies were found inside the home that collapsed during the fire early Friday morning near Conroe (KAHN’-roh), about 40 miles north of Houston.
A fire official says the three critically injured include a 10-year-old boy. Three other members of the family were taken to hospitals with injuries that are not life threatening.
Spencer says two Shenandoah police officers also were hurt, suffering smoke inhalation and other injuries. Another officer with another department also was hurt.
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7:45 a.m.
Three children are missing and six other members of the same family are injured, three critically, after a burning house collapsed north of Houston.
Montgomery County sheriff’s Lt. Scott Spencer says the missing children range in age from 7 to 13 years.
Spencer says three of the people taken to hospitals are in critical condition and three others have injuries that are not life-threatening. Montgomery County Fire Marshal Jimmy Williams told KHOU-TV that one of the critically injured is a 10-year-old boy who suffered severe burns.
Spencer says two Shenandoah police officers who were among the first to respond to the fire near Conroe (KAHN’-roh) also were hurt, suffering smoke inhalation and other injuries.
Williams says flames and heat drove away emergency responders attempting to enter the home.
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