SODUS TOWNSHIP, Mich. -- A 26-year-old mother and her five children died in an overnight fire that consumed a motel in Berrien County.
Meanwhile, the woman's husband and a 1-year-old escaped from the flames.
Investigators identified the mother as 26-year-old Kiarre Curtis and her five children:
Marquise Thompson, 10
Gerome Randolph, 7
Samuel Curtis, 5
Savod Curtis, 4
Avery Curtis, 2
Curtis' husband, Samuel Curtis, 36, and a 1-year-old child were able to escape from the motel.
The fire broke out just before 2 a.m. at the Cosmo Extended Living Motel in Sodus Township near Benton Harbor. When firefighters and police arrived at the scene the hotel was filled with flames and smoke.
Four other residents and four first responders were taken to Lakeland Medical Center in St. Joseph where all eight of them were treated for smoke inhalation and released.
Samuel Curtis and the 1-year-old child were two of the four residents who went to the hospital and were treated for smoke inhalation.
The Michigan State Police Fire Marshal and Berrien County Sheriff's Office don't know what caused the fire, but are investigating.
A majority of the rooms in the motel are damaged. The American Red Cross is working on finding shelter for the nearly 40 displaced residents.
