May 12, 2015
Authorities are considering the possibility of arson after an apartment fire in Kensington left one person dead and five people injured early Monday morning, CBSPhilly reports.
The fire began around 6 a.m. at a three-story building at Kensington Avenue and East Willard Street.
“Somebody firebombed the place,” building landlord Robert Mitchell told CBSPhilly. “The tenant upstairs ripped apart the piping and the wires of the electronic fire alarm system on the side that the fire was on.”
Multiple people on the scene say the building’s first and third floors were suddenly on fire in a matter of seconds after a loud argument.
A man jumped from a second-floor window to escape the flames. He was taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead a short time later, according to officials.
A child, whose age and condition were not immediately released, was taken to St. Christopher’s Hospital, fire officials said.
Four others were also transported to the hospital, they added.
A woman jumped from the second-floor window, according to authorities. Officials added that another man either fell or jumped from the second floor.
The flames were placed under control in less than an hour. There did not seem to be any working smoke alarms inside the building, according to authorities.
The incident remains under investigation.
Read the entire CBSPhilly story here.
