A 9-year-old girl and her grandmother died after a fire at a home in Falls Church, Virginia, early Tuesday, their family confirmed.
Firefighters responded about 1:45 a.m. to a blaze at a single-family home in the 6600 block of Barrett Road, officials said.
When firefighters arrived, they saw large clouds of dark smoke and flames shooting out from the home. Despite the flames, they were able to go into the home and found two people inside. A dog was also removed from the home.
The girl died at a hospital. Her father identified her as Kaysie Anne Arancibia.
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“Right now, I’m feeling hurt, you know,” said the girl’s father, Mauricio Arancibia. “I mean, it’s my 9-year-old child. She had her whole life ahead of her, and, you know, I have no words right now.”
He said he remembers his daughter lighting up any room she entered.
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“To feel her presence being there,” he said.
The girl's grandmother was taken to a hospital in critical condition. Her family confirmed her death Tuesday night.
The dog did not survive either, officials said.
Neighbor John Morris said he called 911 and rushed to help.
“The sky was red, so I said, ‘OK, let me go down in the yard and see what’s happening,’” he said.
But the fire burned too hot for him to get close to the home.
“I wish I could have gotten there sooner and pounded on some doors and gotten people out,” Morris said.
The fire left a large hole in the celling of the home, as well as several broken windows. Some of the windows had black burn marks above them. Damaged items were scattered in the front yard.
“There was a large volume of fire, mainly to the exterior of the home, but the house was pretty heavily involved in fire upon arrival,” Fairfax County Deputy Fire Chief Lee Warner said. “It's an unfortunate and sad incident.”
Fire investigators remained on the scene for several hours. Officials haven't said how the fire may have started, but said they believe it may have started in the back of the building.
Stay with News4 for more on this developing story.
