- At least 13 people, including 7 children, died in a fire in a
Philadelphia duplex Wednesday morning. - "In 35 years, this is probably the worst fire I've ever been to," Craig Murphy, the Philadelphia Deputy Fire Commissioner, told reporters.
At least 13 people died in a fire at a publicly owned apartment building in Philadelphia early Wednesday morning, fire officials said.
Seven of those killed were children, Craig Murphy, the Philadelphia Deputy Fire Commissioner, confirmed to reporters.
Two others were injured and hospitalized.
"In 35 years, this is probably the worst fire I've ever been to," Murphy told reporters.
The fire department first got reports of a fire at 6:38 a.m. local time at 869 North 23rd Street — a publically owned, three-story building in the city that housed at least 26 people at the time of the fire.
The fire was under control by 7:31 a.m.
Murphy added that the number of deaths is "dynamic" as firefighters are still searching inside the building.
The Philadelphia Housing Administration last inspected the house in 2020, when they confirmed there were 6 working smoke detectors at the time.
But in Wednesday's deadly fire, none of the smoke detectors went off.
"We are in the process of investigating this to the highest level we can, we are having our Fire Marshall investigate this and that is all of the information we have at this time," Murphy said.
This story is developing. Please check back for updates.