The weekend housefire in Columbus took the lives of 27-year old Lars Barcel, his four-month-old son Lars Jr., 28-year-old Janell Miller, and her six-year-old daughter Natasha Lambrecht.
State Fire Marshal investigators say an ember from a wood-burning fireplace started the fire, the first fatal one in Columbus in five years.
“The spark or ember found its way to that cardboard box and caught it on fire, at least that’s what the theory is, and from there it spread throughout the home,” Columbus Fire Chief Dan Miller told 6 News.
“I always remember my parents saying parents are supposed to die before their children, and unfortunately when we have circumstances like this when you see a young child hurt or lose their life, it hits us hard all the way through, whether you have that student in your classroom or not,” said Columbus Schools Superintendent Dr. Troy Loeffelholz.
Not only has this tragedy affected the community, but it also hits first responders hard.
Chief Miller says counselors are on hand;
“One thing we don’t want to do is compartmentalize it, bury it, take it home, and let it bother us down the road.”
Fire investigators say there were two smoke detectors in the home, but they were not connected to batteries.