Neighbors in the Pittsburgh suburb of Tarentum woke up to screams coming from inside the house and called emergency crews around 2 a.m., Allegheny County Fire Marshal Bob Full said. One neighbor tried to get inside the home to save the people inside but couldn't, he said.
''I heard a popping sound. I thought it was cars backfiring,'' neighbor Lorraine Cani said. ''I looked outside on the porch and (the house) was burning. I was in shock.''
The county coroner would not release the identities of the three victims until relatives were notified.
But neighbors told the Valley News Dispatch of Tarentum that the house belonged to Kenny and Cathy Bertram, who lived there with their son, Eric.
Neighbor Glenda Martin said Cathy Bertram was studying to be a recovery nurse, while neighbor Lynn Stello said the woman was a mother-figure to other people who lived on the street.
''Kenny was quiet. Eric was quiet,'' Stello said. ''Cathy was an angel. She was an angel on our street.''
