One of seven people critically injured in a St. Paul house fire has died, the fire department said Thursday.
Firefighters pulled an adult and six children from their smoke-filled Payne-Phalen residence early Wednesday. They were all unconscious and first responders immediately gave them CPR, and took them by ambulances to the hospital.
The homeowner, Pa Cheng Vang, said Wednesday that he was at work when he was notified about the fire. He said his wife and children, ages 1 to 6, had been in the home. His oldest daughter died, he wrote on a GoFundMe for funeral expenses.
The fire department determined the fire on Arkwright Street near Maryland Avenue was accidental and the cause is under investigation, said Deputy Fire Chief Roy Mokosso.
The fire department was called about the fire at about 1:30 a.m. A 911 call was believed to have come from inside the residence.
There were working smoke detectors in the home, but the occupants were likely unable to escape because of the location of the fire on the first floor and because one adult was alone with six children, Mokosso said Wednesday. Preliminary reports were the injuries were predominately from smoke inhalation.
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