Fire Claims Calif. Boy, Injures Others

A 10-year-old boy died and two other children were critically injured when a fire ripped through a Mount Hope home early Monday morning, a fire official said.

When firefighters arrived shortly after midnight they found a single-family home on J Street near Toyne Street fully engulfed in flames and were told three children were still inside the burning house, said San Diego Fire-Rescue spokesman Lee Swanson.

As crews began attacking the fire, firefighters located the children in a back bedroom. Two were taken to the hospital but by time firefighters found the third child, he had died, Swanson said.

Swanson said the children had been home with a babysitter and her boyfriend when the fire broke out. The woman’s boyfriend suffered a serious burn injury and was taken to the hospital. Two firefighters also were injured, one who had burns to his ears while the other had a knee injury, Swanson said.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

The blaze caused an estimated $400,000 in damage to the structure and its contents.

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