4 children saved from St. Louis fire; apparently left alone

Associated Press
Thursday, Aug. 15, 2019 6:09 p.m. | Thursday, Aug. 15, 2019 6:09 p.m.

Robert Cohen | St. Louis Post-Dispatch

St. Louis firefighter Josh Roth works to revive a girl, one of four young children pulled from a burning apartment in the 1300 block of Ohio Avenue in the Lafayette Family apartments on Thursday, Aug. 15, 2019. Fire department spokesman Garon Mosby said all four children were under the age of five; one, he said, was in critical condition. Firefighters entered the unit while it was burning and found one child hiding in a closet and a couple in a play tent.

J.B. Forbes | St. Louis Post-Dispatch

St. Louis firefighter Patrick Ferguson carries one of the injured babies as fellow firefighter Mike Perkins applies oxygen on Thursday, Aug. 15, 2019, on their way to a waiting ambulance. Four children were rescued from a second floor apartment in the 1300 block of Ohio. The children were apparently left alone in the apartment.

Robert Cohen | St. Louis Post-Dispatch

St. Louis firefighter Josh Roth carries a girl from a burning apartment to an ambulance after reviving her on Ohio Avenue in the Lafayette Family apartments. She was revived on scene. Four children under the age of 4 believed to have been left alone without adult supervision were pulled from a burning home by St. Louis firefighters on Thursday, and fire officials said they’re lucky to be alive.

Robert Cohen | St. Louis Post-Dispatch

St. Louis firefighter Josh Roth carries a girl from a burning apartment to an ambulance after reviving her in the 1300 block of Ohio Avenue in the Lafayette Family apartments on Thursday, Aug. 15, 2019. Fire department spokesman Garon Mosby said all four children were under the age of five; one, he said, was in critical condition. Firefighters entered the unit while it was burning and found one child hiding in a closet and a couple in a play tent.

ST. LOUIS — Four children under the age of 5 who fire officials believe were left without adult supervision were pulled from a burning home by St. Louis firefighters on Thursday.

One child is in critical condition. A St. Louis Post-Dispatch photographer captured an image of a firefighter working to revive a small girl. The other three children are in stable condition.

Girl revived by a @STLFireDept firefighter, one of four rescued from an apartment fire in south St. Louis. Story, more photos coming. pic.twitter.com/vbCiZ24rdF

— Robert Cohen (@kodacohen) August 15, 2019

Someone passing by the apartment in the city’s Lafayette Square neighborhood just before 1 p.m. saw smoke and called for help. Fire Department spokesman Garon Mosby said firefighters entered the home while it was burning and found the children, including one hiding in a closet and two in a play tent.

“Hats off to the firefighters,” Mosby said. “You walk into a room and at first glimpse there’s nobody there. You’ve got to dig deeper. And we know that children hide (during fires). Bathtubs, closets, under beds, in this case, in a tent.”

Mosby said it appears that the children were left home alone, but the mother of the children came to the scene as firefighters were there.

“These four children are alive because of the great job done by the #firefighters, #EMTs, & #paramedics of @STLFireDept!” - @CFDstlfd pic.twitter.com/r464qzwwiQ

— St. Louis Fire Dept (@STLFireDept) August 15, 2019

The blaze was in the front of the apartment in a brick building just south of downtown. The kids were found in a playroom in the back of the building.

It wasn’t immediately clear if the mother or any other adult could face charges. Phone and email messages left with St. Louis police were not immediately returned.