Child dies in fire pretend "camp fire" in manufactured home

A four-year-old girl died of smoke inhalation and burns in a fire that started when she and her brother lit a pretend “camp fire” in the bedroom they shared in their manufactured home. When the boy was unable to extinguish the fire, he ran outside to tell his mother what had happened. One of the home’s occupants called 911, and responding firefighters advanced two hose lines into the home. They found the little girl in the fetal position by the door to her mother’s bedroom, but their efforts to revive her failed. Investigators believe that an operating air conditioner in the children’s bedroom contributed to the spread of the fire by feeding fresh air into the room. For the whole story and others like it, read “Firewatch” in the latest issue of NFPA Journal.