Crews Sift Through Debris To Find Cause Of Fire That Killed 6
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- There's new information on the deadly fire in East Baltimore that took the lives of three adults and three children, all part of the same family.
Mike Hellgren has an inside look at how investigators are searching for the cause.
There's little left of the Satterfield family's home; their life possessions are stacked in a soggy, melted mess. Six people died there, including three children. Their family wants to know what sparked the fire that killed them.
"Once everybody finds out the reason how the fire really started, I guess we'll have some closure but until that happens, we're always going to wonder how it started," said Johnny Satterfield, the victims' nephew.
While no cause has been officially determined, relatives say space heaters were used in the home, and Eleanor Satterfield, who died in the blaze, recently smelled a strong odor of gas.
"My grandmother said that the day before, but she didn't find where it came from and left it at that," said Ashley Satterfield.
Raymond O'Brocki is the man who hopes to give them closure. He heads the city's fire investigations.
"You cannot leave any stone unturned. There's always something to find in there and you have to find it," he said.
He wouldn't give specifics about the Homewood fire but did speak about what goes into these investigations, finding a cause when all that's left is burnt, wet debris.
"The closer you get to that point of origin, the more delicate you have to excavate," O'Brocki said. "You have to hand excavate, sometimes with hand shovels, hand tools. We work from least damaged back to most damaged, and much of the time, that gets us to our point of origin."
He says starting the investigation quickly is critical.
"The further you separate the time of the fire from the beginning of the investigation, the harder it is," he said. "We're lucky in the city. We staff our fire investigation bureau 24/7."
While loved ones wait for the cause, they live with the loss of those who meant so much.
"It's crazy. It ain't hit home yet. It ain't hit me yet," Ashley Satterfield said.
There are nine fire investigators in Baltimore City, and they are responsible for investigating more than 1,000 fires a year.
