Alabama House Fire Killls 2-Year Old; 12-Year-Old Manages To Escape

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) -- A fast-moving fire in a two-story house in west Tuscaloosa claimed the life of a 2-year-old boy, but a 12-year-old girl was able to climb out a window to safety, firefighters said.

Tysham Jamon Young, 2, died in the fire that occurred shortly after 5 p.m. Tuesday while his grandfather, the Rev. William Hughes, was outside the home with another relative.

When I got to the door to go back in the house to get the baby, the fire was jumping out the house,'' Hughes, 88, said.

Willy Barnes, the family's neighbor, said Hughes told him that the gas burner probably started the fire. The Alabama Fire Marshal's office was trying to determine how it started.

Tuscaloosa County Sheriff Ted Sexton said Kara McTerry, 12, climbed out of a window and told a deputy there was a baby inside the room she had left.

"Deputies tried to get in to get the baby out, but got their jackets burnt,'' Sexton said.

"The house was a total loss. The fire was through the roof before we got there,'' said Tuscaloosa Fire and Rescue EMS supervisor Lt. Travis Parker.