2-year-old boy killed, 2 siblings and father injured in Butler house fire

BUTLER, Pa. — A 2-year-old boy died in a fire at a Butler home.

The fire started around noon Thursday on Knox Avenue, according to fire officials.

Firefighters arrived at the home, finding it fully engulfed in flames. A father and his three children were still inside. The father and two of his children were able to make it out, but one of the kids did not.

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The child’s two siblings -- a 1-year-old boy and 4-year-old girl -- and their father were injured in the blaze. None of the victims were identified, but fire officials said it is a young family.

The 1-year-old suffered burns on his back and was airlifted to UPMC Mercy, while the father and his daughter were taken via ambulance to Butler Memorial Hospital. According to officials, the father suffered from smoke inhalation.

The child who died was found on the second floor of the home, authorities said. The children’s mother was at work when the fire occurred, and no one else was in the home at the time.

The home is also considered a total loss, gutted by the fast moving fire. There was also some damage to a home next door.

None of the firefighters were injured, but officials said several were affected emotionally by the death of the child on New Year’s Eve.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

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