Fire In Southwest Baltimore Leaves Pregnant Woman, 2 Children Dead
BALTIMORE Md. (WJZ) -- Tragedy in Southwest Baltimore. A pregnant woman and her two young sons die when fire sweeps through their rowhouse.
Weijia Jiang spoke with the community torn apart by this tragedy.
The chaos only took moments to unfold.
"Total inferno, believe me all of them going quick," said Hugh Ravenseroft.
But in that short time, a massive fire claimed three lives--a pregnant mother and her two little boys. Police identified the victims as 37-year-old Michelle Manigo, 7-year-old Jaquis Manigo and 11-year-old Tyquis Moore.
"It was like all the way up the top, rised up, smoke everywhere from here down the block. It was terrible, really terrible," said neighbor Ikeysha Isler.
Investigators say the fire started around 1:30 a.m. Thursday inside the victims' home on the 600-block of South Pulaski Street.
"Exactly what caused this fire we don't know at the time. We have fire investigators on the scene making assessments," said Baltimore City Fire Chief Kevin Cartwright.
The flames quickly jumped from porch to porch, destroying 10 additional rowhomes, including Beth Glatthaar's.
"It was blazing. He's like 'Get a bucket of water,' I said 'We got to get out.' It was terrible, all flames. It was so red out here," said Glatthaar.
Glatthaar, her husband, and two sons made it out safely. But now, there's little left of the home where she raised them. A lifetime's worth of belongings is reduced to rubble, and six of the houses have been condemned.
"I don't even know if we're going to be able to walk back into it. I'm looking for somewhere else to live," said Chelsea Milligan.
As a neighborhood tries to rebuild, a family desperately looks for answers to how and why a mother and her beloved children lost their lives.
Family members say Manigo was excited to give birth again in December. She actually has a third son who was staying with his grandma Wednesday night. A fund has been established in his name. Donations can be made to:
The Manigo Family Fund
Chesapeake Bank of Maryland
Arbutus Branch
5424 Carville Avenue
Baltimore, Md. 21227
