Child dies in western Wisconsin mobile home fire
(AUSTRALIA OUT) Generic fire (Photo by Fairfax Media via Getty Images via Getty Images)
RIVER FALLS, Wis. (FOX 9) - A child is dead following a fire in a mobile home in River Falls, Wisconsin, early Friday morning.
City officials said the fire occurred at 4:30 a.m. in a residence on the 1400 block of South Wasson Lane in River Falls. When the fire department arrived on the scene, they found two mobile homes fully engulfed in flames.
A bystander at the scene told authorities a child was inside one of the homes. Fire crews began searching the home and located the 6-year-old girl inside a bedroom. The child was confirmed to be dead at the scene, according to fire officials.
The River Falls Fire Department told FOX 9 that the mobile home with the child and two adults started on fire, and it spread to the neighboring home. The two adults in the mobile home and another adult in the neighboring home were able to escape the fire unharmed. There were no other injuries reported.
The child was identified as 6-year-old Zaelia Follansbee of Hudson, Wisconsin. She was a student at Westside Elementary.
"We are devastated by this tragedy and extend our deepest sympathies to Zaelia’s family, friends, teachers, and classmates," the city said on Friday.
The Red Cross will provide support to the families affected by the fire. The fire remains under investigation, according to the city’s Facebook post.
The fire department said they hope to know the cause and origin of the fire within 24-48 hours.
River Falls is about 12 miles southeast of Hudson near the Minnesota border.