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A fire ripped though a Rochester apartment building early Saturday morning (Dec. 19), killing two young girls and their father, according to WHEC-TV.
Firefighters arrived at the scene at 533 North Goodman Street at approximately 12:45 a.m. to find the building engulfed in flames.
"This was a major fire when they first pulled up, so it had clearly been burning for some point in time before anybody noticed it and called," Rochester Fire Chief John Caulfield told the news station.
Caulfield also said that the roof collapsed just after crews arrived on the scene. The bodies of the girls, ages three and five, and their father were found in that area.
He told the station that the now demolished building had serious structural problems and called the work "incredibly hazardous and dangerous."
Fire officials still don't know the cause of the fire, but hope it sends a message to residents to be careful around the holidays.
