Two young brothers were taken to Strong Memorial Hospital by Mercy Flight after a house fire Saturday (11/16). First responders were called to the farmhouse on Route 14 after a hunter spotted flames coming from the home shortly before 10 a.m.
Fire officials said the boys were home with their mother when the fire started. She and her older son were able to get out of the house but didn’t realize the younger son was still inside.
Assistant Fire Chiefs Zachary Aunkst and Phil Darcangelis were the first to rush inside the home. They searched for the little boy as flames quickly intensified.
“A lot of debris and elements in our way, so it was fighting to get through all of the stuff in the house as well as the intense heat and thick black smoke,” Aunkst said. “Downstairs, we found the staircase and we encountered very intense heat, intense thick, black smoke. You couldn’t see your hand in front of your face.”
Darcangelis also described what they encountered once they made their way upstairs.
“Myself and Zach, we had to push to the second floor,” he said. “We had no handle at the time; we were trying to make a rescue but with the heavy smoke and fire conditions it was hard to get in there.”
Aunkst said he didn’t know the little boy’s name but was calling out for him.
“Yelling fire department; call out; is anybody in here,” he said. “There was actually a cat in the residence crying that sounded like a child crying, so we were trying to chase that down.”
The situation grew dire with each passing minute. Several firefighters searched inside as they waited for water trucks to arrive.
“We get in there and we don’t have water and you go to risk all and save all,” said Aunkst.
Within 25 minutes of the 911 call from a hunter nearby, the little boy was found. Firefighters said he was unconscious and not breathing.
“One of our other firefighters made his way in the little boy’s bedroom. He was located in his bedroom hiding in his closet,” Aunkst said. “The little boy was hiding in his closet, which made it more difficult, besides the intense heat and thick smoke. We had to actually get into the closet to find the child.”
Everyone was able to make it out on their own - except Kayden Bennett. Fire officials say the 4-year-old ran and hid after the fire started, and was unconscious when they found him in a closet.
Family member Steven Henninger says Kayden was in critical condition when taken to Strong Memorial Hospital. Kayden succumbed to his injuries on Friday (11/22/19)
Henninger says Kayden was the youngest of three. Eldest Hunter, 10, was able to make it out after alerting his mother, Tracy, of the fire. Henninger says the boy’s 9-year-old sister was not home at the time.
In addition to the hospitalization and later tragic loss of young Kayden, the family is also reeling from losing their place to live.“Losing your home and all its contents to fire is pretty tragic to any family. So, they’re doing the best that they can,” Henninger said.
GoFundMe and Facebook donation pages have been set up to assist the family.
Fire Chief Bob Darcangelis said multiple fire crews responded to the fire, calling it a good turnout for a Saturday.
The chief said the flames were out within 30 minutes and completely under control after an hour and a half.
“Everybody worked good together, right down to the guy driving the truck to the guy trying to make a rescue,” said Darcangelis.
The other child was found outside of the house with non-life threatening injuries. He was also flown by Mercy Flight to Strong. The mother was uninjured, according to fire officials.
According to Aunkst, two dogs and two cats died in the fire. One cat made it out alive
As the investigation into how this fire started continues, fire officials say the home is likely a total loss.
The Wayne County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the cause of the fire. They believe it started somewhere on the first floor. Investigators are also checking to see if there were working smoke detectors in the home.
Story and photo by Times
news partner 13WHAM
