MASSENA, N.Y. (AP) — Six family members, including three children, died after a fast-moving fire swept through a home in northern New York, according to officials.
High winds fueled the fire that struck a single-family home at around 10 p.m. on Monday in Massena, a town near the St. Lawrence River and the northern border with Canada.
State and county fire officials were investigating the cause of the fire and said they believe it started in the kitchen.
A family member identified the victims as Diana Avery, Thomas Bowen, Tiara Bowen, Joshuha Bowen, 14, Eli Bowen, 9, and Karmen Bowen, 6. The relative, Joseph Bowen, said Avery owned the house and was his mother and Thomas Bowen was his brother.
“My brother was a jack-of-all-trades and his wife was the keeper of the children,” Joseph Bowen said in a phone interview Thursday. “They loved camping. They loved to go to the beach and they loved playing in water.”
The family in a statement thanked community members, including emergency responders and the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe, for their support.
“Although our hearts are saddened and mourn for the loss of our family members, it is uplifting to hear how our family has touched and uplifted this community,” the family said in a statement to provided to local news outlets. “Like this tragedy, words cannot express how this affects the community they had and the coming together of the community.”
Massena Central School District Superintendent Ronald Burke said in a message to the school community that “our hearts are broken at the loss of the three Bowen children,” who he said attended the junior high and elementary schools.
