12 including children killed at apartment fire in Philadelphia

A fire at an apartment building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, claimed the lives of twelve people and injured several more. According to a Philadelphia Fire Department officer, eight children are among the fatalities.

The fire started around 6:00 a.m. local time (11:00 a.m. GMT) in a public housing building in the city's north. It was one of the worst flames as per Deputy Fire Commissioner Craig Murphy.

"We intend to make certain that this tragic loss of life was not in vain," he declared on Wednesday.

He went on to say that eight other people had managed to get out of the building. At the time of the fire, there were estimated to be 26 people in the three-story building.

Since the 1950s, the building has been officially partitioned into two apartments by the government-funded Philadelphia Housing Authority. Officials stated the building had four working smoke detectors at the time of the last inspection in 2020, but none of them went off during the incident.

While investigators do not believe the cause of the fire was suspicious at this time, Mr Murphy told reporters that due to the loss of life, a comprehensive investigation would be conducted.

"This is without a doubt one of the most devastating days in our city's history, the death of so many people in such a horrific way," stated Mayor Jim Kenney during the press conference. "Losing so many children is heartbreaking," he continued.