Five people — including two adults and three children — were killed in a house fire early Monday in Akron’s North Hill neighborhood, Ohio. Four others were hospitalized.
The Summit County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed that two adults and three children died. Investigators were still working to confirm their identities.
Relatives and neighbors told Arkon Beacon Journal that Nepali-speaking two Bhutanese families were living in the home at the time. Neighbors described them as friendly, kind people, and said the loss was too tragic to put into words.
Fox 8 reporter spoke to Yam Subba, who identified himself as the son of one of the victims. He drove up from Columbus after hearing the news.
Subba also told News 5 reporter that his dad, stepmother, and two sisters were among those killed in the house fire.
He shared the below photo of his family members who died early Monday, News 5 uploaded.
GNB has verified the above image in Prena Khanjum’s Facebook account. Authorities have not confirmed yet the identities of the victims.
Subba told the report that his father bought the house about six months ago and had been in Akron for a few years. He said his father lived with Yam’s stepmother and their three children.
Chief Investigator Gary Guenther said they believe a 60-year-old man, a 48-year-old woman, an 11-year-old boy, and two girls, ages 5 and 16, died in the fire, Arkon Beacon Journal reported.
Mahananda Luitel, president of the Greater Akron Hindu Sewa Committee, said in a video post on his Facebook account that the loss Monday was tragic and that it has had a big effect on the rest of the Nepali-speaking community.
He posted a video highlighting the importance of smoke detectors and checking them for batteries on Facebook.
He said many of the community members don’t speak English and don’t see local news or other websites, so it’s important to put out educational content in their language.
“This fire incident should not go unnoticed,” Luitel said. “We have to educate our people.”
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