A dedicated father, grandfather, and firefighter broke into tears as he recalled the time he found out ten of his relatives died in a massive house fire.
In the early Thursday hours, a raging fire ripped through a home in Nescopeck, Pennsylvania, and claimed the lives of ten out of fourteen people who were inside.
While it remains unclear what the cause of the fire was, the Pennsylvania State Police confirmed that a “complex criminal investigation” into the tragic incident has been launched.
Among the first responders who rushed to the scene was Harold Baker, a Nescopeck Volunteer Fire Company firefighter, whose relatives burned to death in the house fire.
According to the reports, Harold’s son, daughter, three grandchildren, and five other relatives died in the fire on Thursday morning.
Recalling the harrowing time he arrived at the burning home, Mr. Baker said: “I couldn’t get in there to save them. That is the biggest thing that has been on me… I couldn’t get in there to save them.”
Speaking to the local media, he added:
“The address that they gave us was the neighbor’s address. It was right next door to them … When we turned the corner up here on Dewey (Street) I knew right away what house it was just by looking down the street.
“I was on the first engine, and when we pulled up the whole place was fully involved. We tried to get into them. There wasn’t no way we could get into them.
“I lost my son, my daughter, grandson, two other grandkids in there, my father-in-law, my brother-in-law, and my sister-in-law. All lost.”
As Baker explained, not all of the people who were in the house at the time of the fire lived there.
“The kids that were there and my two kids were just visiting their aunt and uncle. Those were the ones who own the house. They were there visiting and going into the pool and all that,” he added.
According to the police, the victims were between 6 and 70 years old.
Pennsylvania State Trooper Lt. Derek Felsman also confirmed that the fire will be investigated as arson “should the fire marshals determine the cause to be intentional and incendiary.”
“Three deceased have been removed, and we expect multiple more deceased individuals to be respectfully removed from the residence upon their identification,” he said.
Meanwhile, Robin Massina, the daughter of the Nescopeck mayor, launched a GoFundMe page to raise funds for the grieving family.
Our hearts go out to the entire family.
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