Child playing with lighter near Christmas tree may have ignited fatal Philadelphia fire: report

The rowhome fire that left 13 people, including eight children, dead Wednesday in Philadelphia might have been started by a child who was playing with a lighter near a Christmas tree, officials have stated, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. 

The information about the potential catalyst of the deadly fire was included in a search warrant application filed in the Philadelphia common pleas court, per the Inquirer.

Written in the warrant was “information that a child age 5 or under was playing with a lighter and lit the tree on fire,” Chesley Lightsey, chief of homicide for the Philadelphia district attorney’s office, told the outlet. 

According to Inquirer’s sources, who spoke to the outlet on the condition of anonymity, the child lived in the row home and was seen to flee from the blaze as it spread through the three-story complex. 

The child also allegedly told first responders on the scene that the tree was on fire, according to the Inquirer’s sources, who additionally told the outlet that the child has been interviewed by local authorities since the fire. 

Children under the age of 10 are not eligible to be charged with crimes in Pennsylvania, per the Inquirer, so it is not expected that the child in question will face any charges. 

The Philadelphia Fire Department (PFD) is actively working to determine the fire’s cause, as stated in an update from the city. 

“What I can tell you is this is a resource-intensive investigation. It’s an exceptional time — manpower staffing, equipment, commitment — to get to the origin and cause of this tragedy,” PFD Deputy Chief Dennis Merrigan said, according to NBC 10 Philadelphia.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms is also assisting in the investigation, with the bureau’s Philadelphia division activating its national response team, according to the city.

There were 18 people living on the second floor of the apartment building complex and it took firefighter’s almost an hour to put out the flames Wednesday. 

Bill Richards, a neighbor to the apartment complex, said he was shaken awake by screams coming down the street and called the fire “devastating and upsetting.”

“About a quarter of 7, I heard a woman yelling ‘Oh my god, oh my god,’” Richards said.