Four people, including two young children, died while trying to escape a house fire in upstate South Carolina — while another person escaped.In the early morning on Sunday, Oct. 26, a fire broke out at a residence in Gaffney, and Kathy Shippy made it out of the blaze, Cherokee County Coroner Dennis Fowler said in a news release obtained by PEOPLE.As the fire spread at the one-story home, Kathy reported the fire at 1:40 a.m. by running across the street and asking a neighbor to call authorities, Fowler explained. According...
Four people, including two young children, died while trying to escape a house fire in upstate South Carolina — while another person escaped.
In the early morning on Sunday, Oct. 26, a fire broke out at a residence in Gaffney, and Kathy Shippy made it out of the blaze, Cherokee County Coroner Dennis Fowler said in a news release obtained by PEOPLE.
As the fire spread at the one-story home, Kathy reported the fire at 1:40 a.m. by running across the street and asking a neighbor to call authorities, Fowler explained. According to the coroner, security footage shows the blaze had already enveloped much of the home by this time.
“A doorbell camera on the neighbor’s house shows the structure was fully involved with fire at that time,” Fowler said.
While Kathy escaped the blaze, four others did not, Fowler said: Willie Morris, 38, Dakeyia Shippy, 25, died in the fire, along with 4-year-old Mason Issac, and 7-month-old Jerekry McGill.
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It is not immediately clear what the relationship is between the victims of the multiple fatality fire, but according to Fowler, they all lived in the home.
The source of the fatal fire was traced to an indoor heater, according to Fowler. Kathy said that Morris “was attempting to refuel a kerosene heater inside the home when fire erupted,” the coroner said.
Fowler shared the tragic circumstances the deceased were discovered in.
“All four victims were found on the floor of the kitchen at the rear of the house,” the coroner said. They “appeared to have been trying to escape through a window when they were overcome by smoke,” he said.
The coroner, along with Gaffney Fire Marshall and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division are investigating the fire. Autopsies have been scheduled as part of the effort.