Funeral services set for 2 children killed by Cincinnati fire

CINCINNATI (WXIX) - Funeral services will be held this weekend for two young Cincinnati children killed by a devastating apartment fire earlier this month.

Visitation for 5-year-old Addyson and 7-year-old Alijah will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday followed by a noon funeral service at Corinthian Baptist Church at 1920 Tennessee Avenue in Bond Hill.

Cincinnati firefighters pulled the siblings out of the second story of the burning apartment on Strand Lane in Winton Hills early the morning of Thursday, May 11. The complex is owned by the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority.

The children succumbed to their injuries just minutes apart last week at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, according to the Hamilton County Coroner’s Office.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation and it was “undetermined at this time” if smoke detectors were present in the apartment, fire officials said in a news release the day of the fire.

On Wednesday, a city spokeswoman said: “The investigation is ongoing, but they hope to have some updates by the end of the week.”

Four children in all and their mother were inside when flames broke out. The mother and two of the children self-evacuated but Alijah and Addyson were trapped upstairs, according to the fire department.

When crews arrived, they found “heavy fire blowing out the front first-floor windows of an end unit two-story townhouse,” according to a fire department news release.

Firefighters “initiated a rapid attack on the fire with handlines on the first floor while simultaneously advancing crews to the second floor to search for the reported children. Both children were found and quickly removed.....” the news release states.

Addyston was without oxygen for 10-12 minutes and had no brain activity, according to the latest post on a Go Fund Me page for the family.

Alijah was burned on 30% of his body, lost oxygen for 10-12 minutes and had no brain activity, reads the latest post by the children’s grandmother.

[GoFundME created to help family from apartment fire]

The children’s grandmother’s Go Fund Me post indicates it is accidental.

“The fire started when one of the children plugged up their laptop, and the fuse blew, we are assuming this is an electrical fire,” the Go Fund Me post states. “They have lost everything. I want to thank CFD for rescuing my grandkids - when everyone is trying to get out of a burning building, you courageously go in, and there’s not a thank you big enough to express my gratitude.

“I want to thank Winton Hill Academy staff for your donations and for coming to assist my family at the Cincinnati hospital and Columbus hospital. We can’t repay you enough for your kindness. And just so we are clear, Asia, the mother, saved her own kids, despite local news coverage. It’s cruel and traumatic to say the least, to report anything. The police and fire reports tells the tell.”

The children attended Winton Hills Academy.

Damage at the apartment complex was estimated on the day of the fire to be $110,000.

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