PHOENIX (AP) — A 3-year-old Arizona boy dragged his 1-year-old sister Friday from a house fire that killed their mother and injured two other adults, authorities said.
Fire crews responding to the fire in the Pinal County community of Maricopa south of Phoenix found the mother, 22-year-old Michelle Mariano, lying near a doorway of the mobile home, Maricopa Fire Department spokesman Brad Pitassi said. She was identified by Sheriff's spokeswoman Lt. Tamatha Villar.
Authorities said the children's aunt, 28-year-old Marion Mariano, was also severely burned, and she and the little girl were airlifted to Maricopa Medical Center's burn unit in Phoenix in critical condition.
The little girl had facial and torso burns covering more than 40 percent of her body and Marion Mariano had burns over 18 percent of her body, Pitassi said.
A fourth victim, a man in his 40's or 50's, suffered minor injuries.
The home is located on a state highway and among several used by workers on a nearby farm.
Two men who lived in the home were working in nearby fields when the fire broke out at about 8:30 a.m. The uncle of the victims saw the flames and rushed to help, Villar said. He told investigators the little boy told him something had fallen over in the house and started the fire.
No foul play is suspected, although sheriff's homicide investigators and arson investigators from the Phoenix Fire Department were called in to help determine what happened.
