Cause of W.Va. fire that killed 9 undetermined
Mar 29, 2012, 2:20 PM
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) – A West Virginia fire official says the cause of a house fire that killed nine people likely will never be known.
Based on preliminary findings, Charleston’s Assistant Fire Chief Bob Sharp tells the Charleston Gazette (
http://bit.ly/HhTpKL) that the fire will be ruled “undetermined.”
Two adults and six children were killed in the fire. A seventh child died a day later after family members removed him from life support at a local hospital.
The landlord of the house, Delores Shamblin of Mammoth, has said she ordered eight smoke detectors installed last fall.
Sharp says investigators found three smoke detectors inside the house. One either didn’t work or was improperly installed. The others weren’t installed.
He says it’s possible the fire burned other smoke detectors.
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