Community turns to prayer as 8 children, 2 mothers among 12 killed in Philadelphia house fire
A Philadelphia neighborhood sought comfort in prayer and follow-up vigils Wednesday after 12 people from one family, including two adult sisters and eight of their children, died in a rowhouse fire as helpless neighbors were awakened by “blood-curdling” screams for help early in the morning.
“My sisters and my nieces and my nephews are gone. They are deceased. They are never coming back,” Keta Purifoy told reporters about the tragedy that struck her two sisters identified on social media as Rosalee McDonald, 33, and Virginia Thomas, 30.
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney urged people to “please keep all these folks, and especially these children, in your prayers” during a news conference outside the charred home in Fairmount.
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Philadelphia officials said fire crews responded at 6:40 a.m. to the blaze at the three-story row house on N. 23rd Street, which is owned, operated and inspected by the Philadelphia Housing Authority.
They found heavy fire coming from the second floor of the building, which took 50 minutes to bring under control.
Authorities said the building was originally a single-family home divided in an odd configuration to make two apartments, making it difficult for fire crews to navigate.
At least 26 people were living at the property at the time of the fire, Fox29 reported. Eighteen people lived in the upstairs apartment on the second and third floors, while another eight lived in the downstairs apartment, which included the first floor and part of the second floor.
While the home was equipped with four smoke detectors, none of them were working at the time of the fire, officials said. The fire is currently under investigation.
NBC Philadelphia reports that a child who escaped the blaze told investigators a Christmas tree caught fire, and the blaze spread to the rest of the building.
Qaadira Purifoy, another sister of the two mothers, told NBC Philadelphia that she believes the fire could have been avoided.
“I feel like this could’ve been avoided,” she was quoted as saying. “I feel like it should be mandatory that the city goes around making sure that the fire alarms are working and that there’s fire extinguishers in every house.”
Philadelphia Housing Authority President and CEO Kelvin A. Jeremiah said in a statement that the home was last inspected in May 2021 and the fire detectors were functioning properly at that time.
The ages of all the victims ranged from 2 to 33 years old.
Philadelphia Deputy Fire Commissioner Craig Murphy called the fire one of the worst he has responded to in decades.
“It was terrible. ... I’ve been around for 30, 35 years now, and this is probably one of the worst fires I’ve ever been to,” he said at a press conference.
As the bodies of the children were being removed from the building, relatives gathered in a circle and prayed, according to The New York Times.
Mickie Goodson, 55, who grew up in the area but now lives in West Oak Lane, told The Philadelphia Inquirer that praying with the family helped her.
“I prayed with some of the family members,” she said. “They, of course, were devastated. Praying with the family helped me a little bit. I can’t imagine how they felt. I can’t fathom their pain, what they’re going through.”
Redemption City Church on Poplar Street held a virtual prayer vigil for the community, which attracted more than 300 community members, lawmakers, faith leaders and other officials, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
“We’re a community. When one of us hurts, we all hurt,” Redemption City Church Lead Pastor Stephen Weeks told mourners during the vigil. He was not immediately available for comment when contacted by The Christian Post on Thursday.
