Three members of one family, a dad, and two sons died early Christmas morning in a Quakertown home fire near Philadelphia that investigators say may have been caused by electrical issues and a dry Christmas tree.
Eric King, 41, and his two sons, Liam, 11, and Patrick, 8, died, as well as two dogs.
The mother, Kristin, and the family’s eldest son, Brady, an eighth-grader, escaped with minor burns and were treated and released at Lehigh Valley Hospital.
Authorities are investigating, but the preliminary investigation leads authorities to believe lights on a Christmas tree started the deadly fire around 1:20 a.m. Saturday.
“We will be continuing to investigate to find out why it ignited, but the evidence is very clear that it started in the Christmas tree. It was a real tree,” Quakertown Police Chief Scott McElree told the Courier Times. ” … It was such a hot fire that most of the content where it started is burnt.”
Police say emergency officials attempted to enter the house but the fire kept them back.
“A Christmas tree burns very quickly and very hot,” McElree told the Courier Times. “When tree go dry, its a violent and robust source. There is an immense amount of heat and that probably contributed.”
The Quakertown School District Community identified the family in a statement Saturday, describing the loss as ‘devastating.’
“This news is devastating for the District community and the Quakertown area at large. Eric and Kristin are very active in the community, and the kind of people who make this a special place to live and attend school. The School District sends its heartfelt sympathy to the King family and their many friends and relatives,” the school district wrote in a statement on December 25.
A GoFundMe page created in support of the King family with a target of $200,000, already raised $398,645 as of Sunday morning.
“Eric and Kristin were high school sweethearts and the happiest people you will have ever met,” the post on GoFundMe said. “They were always smiling and full of positive spirits, you just couldn’t help but love them. The three boys, Eric and Kristin were all a huge part of the Quakertown Youth Baseball Association and spent their days and nights at the baseball fields.”
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