AISNE. Seven children and their mother died in a fire at their home on the night of Sunday to Monday February 6, in Charly-sur-Marne.
The circumstances of the tragedy that occurred in the village of Charly-sur-Marne, in Aisne, are becoming clearer: according to the Soissons prosecutor, Julien Morino-Ros, who communicated with AFP, a fire broke out around 12:45 a.m. in a house in this town, where seven children and their parents lived. According to the first elements, the father of the family had identified the causes of the accident, obviously linked to the malfunction of the dryer located on the ground floor. The man would have asked his wife and their children to his family to go up to the second floor, to take shelter. All died, only the father of the family was extracted from the fire by the firefighters. He was badly burned but his life is not in danger.
The children – four of whom were born from a first union – and their mother died of asphyxiation, due to the immense toxic smoke generated by this fire. Upstairs, they were unable to escape through the windows, the roller shutters were stuck in the closed position because of the power failure. The structure of the house located in a narrow street, embedded between several buildings, made very complex the intervention of the firefighters, who intervened for long hours. The fire was extinguished by early morning.
The father of the family was extracted from the flames by a neighboring firefighter, who intervened “individually” before the arrival of help. A medico-psychological aid cell was opened in Charly-sur-Marne. An investigation has been opened by the prosecution.