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Woman dies following GR house fire, teen suffers burns

Posted at 6:38 AM, Feb 11, 2017
and last updated 2017-02-11 06:40:24-05

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The City of Grand Rapids is reminding residents to take advantage of its free smoke detector program after a woman was killed following a house fire Thursday.

It happened in the 1700 block of Paris Avenue SE around 5:55 p.m. Thursday.

Firefighters say when they arrived they found a 15-year-old girl on the front porch with apparent second-degree burns to her hands and her face. The 10-year-old who was with her appeared to be unharmed, according to a news release.

Crews say it appears the fire started in the kitchen, when oil started splashing beyond the stove top, igniting other nearby objects. Crews were able to contain that fire to the kitchen leaving the home with only minor damage.

However, a 67-year-old woman who did make it out of the home safely, suffered a sudden cardiac arrest attack and did not survive.

We’re told there was at least one working smoke detector inside the home at the time of the blaze.

The City of Grand Rapids says this is the third fatality following a structure fire in less than three months and hopes people will start taking precautions and making sure they have several in their home.

“There is no reason that given our free Residential Safety Program any home in Grand Rapids should go unprotected,” said Fire Chief John Lehman. “Simply call 311 to schedule your free assessment and installation.”

No word on the condition of the 15-year-old victim as of now.