Community rallies for family of five children killed in South Bend fire
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (CBS) -- A community has come together to support the family of five children killed in a house fire in South Bend, Indiana this past weekend.
The fire broke out Sunday night in a house in the 200 block of LaPorte Avenue in South Bend. When firefighters arrived, the house was engulfed in flames, with the children all trapped upstairs on the second floor.
The youngest of the victims was 17 months old, Fire Chief Carl Buchanon said at a news conference on Monday.
One surviving victim, an 11-year-old girl who was the oldest child inside, was transported by air to a pediatric burn center in Indianapolis. She was in critical condition.
In the wake of the tragedy, community activist Lynn Coleman is launching a memorial to help the family recover.
"They shouldn't have to go out and ask for help we should be coming together to provide support for them - and that's what we're trying to do," Coleman said.
Meanwhile, a South bend restaurant has launched a donation fund to help with funeral expenses.
"We're here to serve the community, and when that happened, we all got together and thought we should do something and try to help out wherever we could," said George Bourounis, owner of Top Notch restaurant in South Beyond. "The community is a big deal to us. We had a free Thanksgiving breakfast and dinner. We're always trying to give out and help out in the community."
The Indiana state Fire Marshal's office late Tuesday was still investigating the cause of the fire.
