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Fund established for toddler triplets injured in fire
December 4, 2008 - 5:28pm
(Kate Ryan/WTOP Photo)
The doors and windows of this home on Jamestown Road are covered in black soot. (WTOP Photo/Kate Ryan)
BETHESDA, Md. - Toddler triplets remain hospitalized, one day after a fire raged through their Bethesda home, causing $500,000 in damage.
The 2 1/2-year-old boys - Aiden, Bricen and Coleson Petrucelli - are in critical but stable condition at Children's National Medical Center, according to a statement from the Petrucelli family.
The boys are sedated and being treated for smoke inhalation, Montgomery County Fire and Rescue spokesman Pete Piringer says.
The accidental fire began at the home in the 4800 block of Jamestown Road around 1:30 p.m. Wednesday. The home did not have smoke detectors.
Firefighters rescued the boys after their father called 911 to report a hot tub fire.
Despite trying, the children's father couldn't get to their nursery. He told firefighters the boys were upstairs in their cribs.
"His hands were all bloody and he had soot on his face," says Montgomery County Fire Capt. Kimonti Oglesby.
Oglesby made his way into the home, breaking out windows along the way. But the intensity of the heat and smoke kept him from rescuing the boys.
"The fire began to come up the steps behind me, so I ran back downstairs."
After Oglesby ran out, more firefighters ran into the home and saved the boys.
"All the kids were unconscious when we pulled them out," Oglesby says.
Investigators believe the electrical fire was accidental. It originated near the hot tub in the rear of the house when components associated with the hot tub failed.
The fire had smoldered and burned undetected for an extended period before being detected by the family's nanny.
Nearby combustibles overheated and caught on fire, firefighters say.
Two firefighters suffered steam burns during the rescue attempt and were taken to the MedStar Burn Unit at the Washington Hospital Center.
The boys' father suffered burns and smoke inhalation. He was treated and released from the hospital Wednesday night.
The blaze has firefighters once again calling on families to make sure they have at least one working smoke alarm on every level of your home.
An alarm doubles your chances of surviving a fire and should be tested monthly, with its battery replaced yearly.
Montgomery County firefighters went door-to-door Thursday to make sure neighbors have working alarms.
Ruth, who lives across the street from the Jamestown Road home, asked firefighters to inspect her home.
"They checked my three existing smoke detectors and put in fresh batteries, and added a smoke detector."
Firefighters typically check nearby homes after a house fire, but anyone in the county can request a free safety inspection by contacting the fire department.
A fund has been established for the Petrucelli triplets. To donate, click here.
(Copyright 2008 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)
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Montgomery house fire, Jamestown Rd
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