I agree, my heart is breaking for that mother and father. Those poor children - I can't imagine how hard it must be for the mother, not being able to get to her children.

It's very sad, but God help me, my first thought was, "how did he not grab the kids before he ran out?"

theCavalier

It's very sad, but God help me, my first thought was, "how did he not grab the kids before he ran out?"

Easy to ask when you didn't experience it. Perhaps survival was the only thing he could manage and it was simply impossible to get to the kids, assuming they were still alive at that moment. Even the fireman couldn't go inside.

What a shame.

If the ones that perished, died of smoke inhilation, which means it took a while for them to die, the two that lived seemed to be in excellent health, with no smoke in their lungs, is a question for CSI-DNA.

The worst part of this tragedy is Christmas is a day of remembrance and people should feel joy not sorrow, people will always tend to remember their loved ones that they lost on that day but this has to be the worst if you lost them on that day ..... RIP

i wish the moderators would ban certain people...

READ the article...

CRYSTAL-CLEAR

Yea and tell me why the mother could get up to the roof and not the third floor. And she and "boyfriend"? got out? were they insured, those who perished? Poor little babies and their grandparents.

were they insured? take a guess, $1.7M home, uuuh really going to ask that? It also depends on the layout of the house. if you think you walk into 1 house you walked into them all, you need to get out more. How they got where is how they got there. you dont need to make sense of how they escaped, just to cope. i think the medical exsam and the fire martial answered all the questions for the CSI Crystal team, can pack it up, day is done....

theCavalier

It's very sad, but God help me, my first thought was, "how did he not grab the kids before he ran out?"

well lets see... fire! get the hell out, get who you can along the way... people inside yet? maybe why he grabbed the ladder... he couldnt get to the kids. The front entrance way was engulfed in flames, guessing most of the lower level by the sounds. 99% of most houses built have the main staircase leading up from? yes, the front entrance way. only way out then is window, or roof. unless you think when there is a fire, and flames, pick and choose where to go, and burn... you can imagine an old mansion, being renovated. Lots of flamables around for treating wood, and other objects, then the wood and other objects that burn just as good with the fresh coat of stain, and varnish, and protectant soaked into the wood. ya... that fire will just stay on the porch on the 1st floor, untill everyone has time to get out...

put yourself in someones shoes once before flapping nonsense if you will. i had 3 cousins burn to death the day before x-mas back in the mid 80's. 1 child out of 4 survived. the mother and daughter were treated for smoke inhalation, and released. the father spent at least a good part of the year in the hospital for 3rd degree burns on over 60% of his body. it was a 3 story farm house, and i remember it to this day what it looked like inside and out. if you for 1 second think someone could have got those 3 kids out alive, well maybe you need to don some fire fighter gear, and join the real men, see just how easy it is.. everyone is in a panik. you have to make sure everyone is accounted for. if they are not, in most cases you cant run into a burning building like in the movies. you have plastics, synthetics, you name it all burning in the fire along with wood, fabric, and matresses, as well other furniture that when burning, gives off formaldahyde, and other seriously toxic fumes... enough to drop you where you stand trying to breath after 1 breath. You lungs cant cope with the fumes, so you are coughing so back you are gagging on your own snot, and other fluids being produced from your body being under a to put it mildly, a chemical attack.

This wasnt the movies, it was real life, in real time... some of you should know the difference, but i see not.

stick to CSI, you can yell at the TV show all the clues till they get it right, and show yourself, just how bright you are.

"sadist" huh?

What a tragedy! It's things like this that make me wonder if there really is a God and if so then why would he let something like this happen on Christmas day!??????

Exactly Kevin......... It's hard to hear these people died this way especially while all are trying to get out and the grandpa dies while trying to save his grandkids and family. I was so teary eyed reading this and feel the same way :( Oh God why and to hear they suffered is just terrible. be safe everyone and fix your fire alarms now !

This is not fair! If the grinch "friend" (or is he a fiend?) didn't come over, this wouldn't have happened, and they would still be alive. Any incident like this is sad. What makes this worse is that it happened on Christmas day. RIP.

Please pray for the victims' relatives and friends (and not for the fiend). Thank you.

To the grinch "friend": Are you a friend or a foe? SHAME ON YOU!!!!!

Such a terrible tragedy. I can't even imagine the final moments of fear those poor people had, and how the grandfather was trying so hard to save his grand babies. Truly sad, my thoughts and prayers for the victims and their family and friends.

What fool puts fireplace ashes in a bag ? That person has to live with the horror that he/she killed 5 innocent people.

The "friend" did what friends do - tried to help out by cleaning up. An error in judgement is just that, an error. You people who see intent, watch too much TV.

jsmoothelm; how old are you - the Grinch...really?

I waited 24 hours to clean out my outdoor fire pit after a fire and it still caught the brush on fire where I put the ashes. A friend of mine burned down his cabin on Mount Hood when he left ashes on his snow covered back porch - and he was a volunteer fire fighter. You just never know, and it can happen to any of us.

I agree it's a great friend who helps prevent a tragedy from occuring by putting out a smoldering fire in a fireplace. But who bags up ashes that are still smoldering and leave them in the house!! Who ever "bags" up ashes? What sort of "bag" do you pt them in? That's just asking for trouble...

Lot's of tragic irony in this sad story...the safety guru grandfather who didn't make sure the fire was out himself or that his daughter's home had battery powered smoke detectors before allowing everyone to go to sleep. The "helpful" friend who improperly cleaned up the fireplace ashes, and the boyfriend who was able to escape the fire but somehow "lost" the girls while braving the intense heat. How'd he get out but not the girls with him?

Such a horrible tragedy...I'm praying for the surviving mom.

did you read the article? Yes, they are no longer married. Wow.

jesus...some people are pretty dense. "Separate" is not "divorced"...so they were still married.

And pertaining to this article it matters why?

Where did Sylvia say anything about the mother's marital status? And why does it matter? Her parents and her children are dead. Whether she is divorced or separated won't change that.

sean stepped on their private parts twice. I've chimed for years here that how you read a post is what gives it meaning (many here read everything with a closed angry intent). sean; what other things did your mind ad to post 4?

why is her boyfriend being there even a subject for controversy? this drives me nuts. her parents were there, her children were there. clearly this guy was an accepted part of her life.

Let's not forget those kids had a father too. I've read lots of people saying what a tragedy this for the mom. Please don't forget there's a father out there who lost three kids on Christmas day also. As I dad, I can't imagine anything more devastating...

Very true skimeister

Kind of none of your business.

andrefan,

Here is a curious question. What are your sleeping arrangements in your house? Let me guess, NONE of my business? I agree. So their sleeping arrangements are NONE of your business.

How could your "curious" comment not be taken as offensive andrefan?

"Curious"?

you know I'm not the only one that has mention the contractor and you know what I think if it happened say last week everyone else would be making sick perverted(which mine were not) comments and also doing as they always do turn it into a political rampage. I don't think I need to explain my self further.

And the fire will likely be found to be negligence on the part of the contractor. How often have we seen this happen during such work? This poor woman needs to be on suicide watch. She needs to be taken in by someone she trusts and watched carefully for a long time. She is high powered and will beat herself to death internally. As she said, her whole life was in there. Her children and parents have died and are at peace, but she will die over and over and over again before she, herself, joins them. What unimaginable horrors we are witness to in our brave new world of information... Requiescat in pace

Andrefan-

Heard on the news this morning that the relationship between this woman and the contractor was/is STRICTLY business, NOT AT ALL romantic.

Just to chime in on my own personal experience..... regarding some of the rather insensitive comments about the contractor.

I'm retired, and have been divorced for about 9 yrs, and yet, I'm still good friends with my ex. I'm also quite handy with tools. The point is, that quite often, if I'm available to help her out financially when construction issues are needed, I'll drive the 4 hrs to her location, and tackle a 2-3 day job, and sleep on the couch.

This contractor could very well have been using one of the extra bedrooms, as clearly, this place has many. He could very easily have been from out of town, and traveling back, and forth from his location, might have been a big stumbling block to finish his job in a timely manner.

Yes, I'm well aware that that situation is not the norm, BUT.....why do some of you feel the need to "put your foot in your mouth", rather than to just keep quiet about your curious issues. This event was NOT about a possible illicit affair between two individuals, but all about the tragic consequences of an accidental fire, and the loss of life.

Unfortunately, it's just too easy for some of you to jump to a conclusion, and VOICE your own dark thoughts vocally! Next time, bite your tongue, and wait for more info to arrive; otherwise, you're just another rumor monger....

Separted. Another inquiring mind.

The writer made her sleeping arrangement everyone's business by including that information in the article. @ HOTTICKET--- Of course , she denied it. Doesn't make it true.

I hate to acknowledge this comment with a response, but it's not uncommon for a household going through extensive remodeling to hire a contractor to reside on a semi-permanent basis and live in a spare room, mother-in-law room or basement apartment. As for his attire, I can't imagine he had much time to put on anything else.

If it weren't true, however, and it were a more personal relationship, I can't imagine what difference it would make.

As for me, my focus and thoughts are on the sympathies and regards to the surviving family. I can't imagine a greater horror than what she experienced.

@ William Bjornson, Aloha, Orygun

While I can agree with the bulk of your comments...... you blew it on the first two sentences, as they were pure conjecture on your part! You have absolutely no knowledge as to why this accident occurred, and yet you felt the want to regurgitate to the rest of us, your own biases.

Rather pathetic!!

After several people commented about what I said about the contractor and some explained how for extensive repairs some contractors that are not local do stay at the home in a spare room, I apoligize for my insensitivty, I live in a small town and never heard of contractor staying at home, most people in my town use local contractors that come and go day by day. Again I apoligize and send my condelences to the family-Mrs. Badger and her husband.Next time I will think about what I wrote before I hit post button.

This story haunts me....how horrific and sad, I hope this poor woman has someone she can lean on..I can only imagine. My thoughts and prayers are with the survivors.

Not only are my prayers with her but her husband. He lost his children, had already lost his marriage and he is woken on Christmas morning with that news?

May God somehow help them all in that family.

I'm assuming that the two that escaped may have had downstairs rooms and so could rush outside, while probably the others were upstairs.

Stairs act as chimneys and funnel the fire upwards. The fireplace could have been upstairs. They said "A fireplace in the home" there were probably more than one in that house.

andre...it shows you have class to admit your mistake...too bad more on here don't show that.

I just bought a small galvanized trash can with lid for ashes from a new woodstove...and then put the full can outside on dirt in my best protected corner from winter winds...with the bail up to prevent lid from flying off...and I recall thinking how well I had been trained by my engineer-Dad in these kinds of things...and how many folks may not have the experience growing up that I did...and here is a prime example of someone having no understanding that fresh ashes can still have hot coals lurking and hot enough to start a fire sometimes even several days later. One small unintended mistake in life here claims one woman's entire family. Unimaginable and my sympathies go out to this tragic woman.

Michelle what was that?

To God be the glory of what? The fire that killed people?? Are you insane?

sounds like your rooting for a football team

Aside from the enormity of this woman's loss, devastating on any day of the year, this happened on one of the days we commemorate family and friends--silly religious traditions aside. Not only will this woman suffer with this everyday for the rest of her life, there's an entire season that will just compound her misery. What better evidence do you need for the absence of a benevolent god?

Moreover, why would a god who demands we joyously celebrate the birth of his son play such a cruel trick on one of his creations, who now will observe 12/25 as the day her young children died horribly?

Your sentiment makes no sense.

This is true. My stepdaughter lost a 2 week old baby boy just before Christmas one year. He was premature and never developed properly. She still has a very hard time with the idea of celebrating anything. She now has two beautiful girls but even they do not cover that loss. Just sad.

I long ago gave up on any idea of any compassionate supernatural being. This isn't mysterious at all, rather just cruel, and but one of hundreds of such stories we have seen this past year. There is no lesson to be learned, no good reason whatsoever for taking a child from its parents or the reverse at such an age. People do not live better lives after such an event. They suffer like hell for the remainder of their own lives.

they suffer because they don't believe and don't understand god's plan. if they suffer the rest of their lives it is out of selfishness not compassion for the deceased.

God's plans are too big for humans to understand. That's why we struggle with issues like this story. "Why" is a question we ask when bad things happen . . . but not when good things happen. The bad and the good are all a part of the billions of contingencies that occur each day. We can't see how the bad things fit in, but somehow they do. That is why we learn to "praise Him when we win and praise Him when we lose." Or, as Job said in the Bible, "Though He slay me, yet will I follow." True followers of Jesus understand this. Others will mock.

Mike-100164,

Really?

Have you ever lost a child?

I think not or you would not be spewing such BS. As you would know the hell a person who has lost a child or all their children go through daily and for the rest of their lives is because they don't believe in GOD get real and get a life. I am a person who believes in god and has lost a child and the only thing that keeps me going day to day is knowing I will see her again some day. God can not and will not ever be able to take the pain away and if you think he can than you are a ignorant person and needs to go get some insight into a parent who has lost a child. You are one of those who also think that if you sin you will go to hell too Right? Yeah that's what I thought..

Yes, Sam we don't and won't know WHY things like this happen. That is what faith is all about; walking in total belief without knowing why. Bad things happen all the time to families; it is absolutely heart-breaking. My own Mom relied on and clung to her faith in God and something greater than any human can begin to understand when her daughter; my sister was murdered with 7 other student nurses by a man named Richard Speck in July of 1966. Yes, my mom could have quit living, hated Speck and blamed God, but the honor of my sister was kept real through all of our faith in God. Yes, holidays were tough, but how tough it must be for those that have no belief in something greater and bigger than themselves or faith. That is a tragedy and I feel very sad for them. God Bless the survivors of this tragedy.

For the people who are getting caught up in the nonsense of who, what, why, stay focused on the article and leave your selfish concerns out of this. This is a sad and tragic story. A mother and daughter has lost everything that meant the world to her...her children and both parents. Stay focused and leave your beliefs or non beliefs out of this!!! who cares about what you think? Too bad, and so sad their is a forum for you and I to voice opinions.

Moreover, why would a god who demands we joyously celebrate the birth of his son play such a cruel trick on one of his creations, who now will observe 12/25 as the day her young children died horribly?

fretz keep asking and you will find redemption. Here is a little hint to understand the benevolence of God, look to Jesus's last days and what he went through. You might want to study the subject before you make comments lol

Religious people are so full of it. I hate you all.

If you can afford 1.7 million for an old Victorian, please install a sprinkler system. Everyone would have lived.

End of story.

Yes, I have lost a child. And no, I do not blame God. Instead I am thankful that my child is now safely in the arms of Jesus and no longer in this sick world of hateful people like those I have seen on this vine. My child does not have to know the torture of bullying, the struggle of earning a living, the pain of a broken heart . . . or a loss of her own child. For these things I am extremely grateful.

Oh, but marinmom, HATE is a religion, just a different leader.

No need for hate here. But, there are some good lessons to be learned.

I do agree that a sprinkler system and/or smoke detectors should have been the first things on the contractor's list. Sadly, it is too late for this family, but should prove a good warning to others. We always had fire drills with our kids when they were small, so everybody knew what to do in case of a real fire. And we still keep an escape ladder in the closet of an upstairs bedroom should anyone be trapped on the upper level.

Also, I remember being chewed out by a friend when I was younger for dumping an ashtray full of ashes in a trash can in her home. (I didn't smoke so I never thought about it starting a fire.) I never forgot that lesson and make a point to never drop any ashes or spent matches in the garbage until they are doused with water.

Lorelei123: well said, I couldn't have said it better. Hate IS a religion. Its a sickness, a disease, and it destroys your reasoning. Marinmom illustrates it everytime she opens her mouth.

I pray for this mom, and everyone else who lost loved ones in this horrible accident.

Lorelei, but God created satan as well. Why would he do that? If you believe some you have to believe all, like it or not.

mike...my dad died in a fire two years ago...they say he went quickly because of his CPOD...but I saw his death certificate...it says he had burns...he was on a downward spiral from, among other things, bi-polar and a lot of those freaking drugs he had to take to stay coherent sometimes.

Do you honestly think he died because he didn't believe? He didn't even know where he was half the time.

Children are innocent...no one should say or even believe that God would have them "punished" because they don't "believe."

You ass...I STILL can't get it through my head how much he would have suffered...and I cannot fathom how this woman feels right now.

Try and be a little more compassionate...and while you're at it, take a really hard look at what your religion REALLY means...

God created satan as well

Pray tell what religion is that where God created satan

um...patrick...you are being sarcastic, I assume?

God did create Satan. But he was not Satan, but Lucifer. The Bible says he was the most beautiful creation. But Lucifer decided to rebel against God and was cast out of heaven with one third of the angels who had joined his rebellion. It is all in the Bible. You know . . . the book a lot of people say is full of fairy tales. But one day the truth will be known for everyone to see. Jesus IS the Lord and Savior. This I believe despite all of the mockers.

It doesn't matter what was going on if anything...nobody's business...

I thought about it immediately. I also wonder why it was even mentioned in the report, unless they wanted speculation?

I notice they did not mention the owner's nightwear.

Your comment is cruel.Thats why television has ruined the minds of people.The crime shows of all sorts wich are too many to mention feed off of the people like you that watch them.Everthing must have a motive,accidents never happen.Get real..

Maybe it hadn't occurred to you but they article states that a person staying in the home had left the ashes where they could start the fire; absent the identifying of that person other than the contractor who was her beau and helping her remodel the house, it would lead one to presume the contractor may have been the person responsible for starting the fire through negligence.

It's not salacious...it's germane to the story.

Your posting makes almost no sense and indicates you are very ungrounded.

Maybe it hadn't occurred to you but they article states that a person staying in the home had left the ashes where they could start the fire; absent the identifying of that person other than the contractor who was her beau and helping her remodel the house, it would lead one to presume the contractor may have been the person responsible for starting the fire through negligence.

JR,

I was waiting for someone to state the obvious. However, the original story had a salacious bent. It gave a neighbors statement telling us of a barefoot man in his boxer underwear walking down the drive with his arm around the woman. The story then said something about the woman's husband being notified of the fire...nothing about them being separated. Yes, the question mark did pop into my mind.

Fortunately, this version, or update if you will, removes the salacious bent and makes the fact germane to the story.

All of that aside, leaving a bag of ashes in the mudroom was an incredibly stupid move, one that cost precious life.

This woman has an enormous amount of healing to do. I just hope she can.

How will that be interesting? 5 people dead from a house fire isn't "interesting " enough, it will be a better, more "interesting" story if accelerant was used? Why even speculate that it was or wasn't since NOTHING in the story indicates it might have been or a reason to suspect it was. Its comments like this, that make it not surprising to me when reporters include what the male house guest/contractor was wearing. All for the American publics amusement.

Mr. Carter: Wood is an accelerant, ya idiot.

Kitt-58,

No, wood is NOT an accelerant, but it can absorb accelerants. Do a bit of homework so you don't come across like the name you called another poster.

Um, Kitt. No, wood is not an accelerant. Please look it up and edify yourself before people perceive you to be an idiot. OOPS! Too late!

be nice...I'm sure Kitt meant that it burns...no major reason to jump all over him/her.

Let's remember what happened and just be nice to each other...

The article says "The home was demolished Monday due to the fire damage and safety concerns." This story is a tragidy and may be a terrible accident, but has anyone else ever heard of a home being demolished that quickly after a fire. It kind of does make it sound like someone IS trying to hide something.

I thought that was "funny" too. I find it hard to believe that the "contractor" had two of the kids and took them downstairs and was stopped by fire and they were "separated"...I would imagine those kids would be holding onto him for dear life...yet he makes it out and neither one of them do? I'm not convinced this is an accident...seems too convenient. There are plenty of women who kill their children, so don't reply back how could I say such a thing. An it wouldn't be the first time a mother hurt her kids to get back at the father...they were seperated. It wouldn't be the first time parents were killed for money...get real people...there are just too many questions that don't have answers and the house be torn down so quickly adds fuel to the fire (pun intended) that there is more going on here.

Liz-1343035 I agree that that some of it seems a bit strange, but I have to say that I have actually witnessed 2 homes being torn down quickly right after a fire, especially when they are a pose danger to the public. They do this when there is a chance that the home or rubble may ignite again. I have seen homes ignite after the fire department has put the fire out and have left the scene. I also saw on the news that the fire department indicated that for this home it was very difficult to even walk across the floor in the house, so difficult that they had to lay ladders down flat just to try to make it across the floor. The structure was not in place or was not strong enough to hold their weight. Their communications was released to the public and we can hear them indicating that there is a wall of fire right above their heads, and they were told to "back out". Very scary. Imagine trying to take a step and the floor collapses beneath your feet.

It may be relevant. It speaks to motive.

Suspicious. At least a little. Wonder if the authorities will look into it?

JohnCarter-428979

It may be relevant. It speaks to motive.

HOW????

She's seperated from her husband. Who cares about the contractor? The story even says he is the boyfriend. You should try reading the story.

Yes it is relevant - it may have been a romantic case of arson.

Fire burns down a house that is being remodeled and highly insured . . . yes that sounds about right - divorce pending and fashion queen and her unlicensed contractor are planing to move to the city.

I am apalled at some of the ridiculous and cruel conspiracy theories here. This woman just lost her parents and all 3 children, and you jump to conclusions she or a boyfriend did this?!?! Even the firefighters said there is nothing suspicious. It was a tragic accident. Grow up!

John carter IS from Mars...where everything is suspicious...that's why he's here...they don't want him back home, either...

Who knows and why do you even care? It's NONE of your business.

I live in Stamford, CT and in our local newspaper it mentioned the children's father as her estranged husband. Do people ever think that the woman was divorced and she is dating/friends with this man who also happens to be a contractor and working on her home, so that's why he was there at 5am on Christmas morning.. People really need to grow up. They identified him as the contractor, because of the extent of the renovations going on, im sure the police/fire department want to make sure that nothing construction related caused this fire...

kohny

i was wondering why the handyman was in boxers......isnt she married?....you do not think he was modeling undies for her work do you..........so sad

Um, it was 5am, I'm gonna take a wild guess and say he was sleeping in his boxers....and not there doing house work at 5am Christmas morning.

I'm also going to take a leap and say it's possible the woman is estranged and has a new boyfriend. Not completely out of the ordinary.

If the woman was divorced, the article would say that police were driving the ex-husband to the scene. That's not what it says.

It is also curious that police were driving the husband to the scene at all, unless they want him handy for questioning. If he is in fact "estranged", he might also be angry, perhaps angry enough to commit arson then zip back to NYC. Does he have an alibi for the time just before the fire was detected?

You need to lay off The Law and Order episodes. Down, TV detective, down.

The woman's story was that the fire started from embers taken from the fireplace and placed in a bucket. How did the fire get outside of the bucket? You wouldn't leave a a pail full of burning wood to stay in the house because it would produce smoke, fumes, and CO gas in the house. You would place it outdoors, far away from the house.

I think she kicked it over during a drunken lovefest with the contractor, which caused the home to go up in flames.

It says she is seperated. Get the facts!

You wonder why the contractor was in his boxers?? It was 5 in the morning and HE WAS SLEEPING!!! He ran out in his boxers because he woke up to a FIRE and probably couldn't find his clothes (and it was dark!). Geez people!! Are you going to stop to look for clothes if you were in that situation? Probably not! In fact, one of my neighbors was getting dressed for work and had forgotten something on the stove and the kitchen was on fire. She ran next door to her neighbors not realizing she was nude except for a pair of panties. She didn't even realize it until her neighbor got her a bathrobe. Panic is the answer, people!!

Let's hope that their separation during Xmas isn't a contributing factor.

He was or had been working on something that is obvious, but I don't beliege it can be classified a furnace.

You seem to be mighty smug

Jett, wow.........you are the first to mention smoke detectors!! of course, that is strange, where were they!!??

If the house was under renovation, sometimes they are the last things to be installed sadly...

They just moved into the home last year, which was previously occupied by other families since being built in the 1800's. I'm pretty sure it had smoke detectors installed in the last ten years if not 30 years ago.

kind of stupid and careless not to have smoke detectors installed, they probably could have saved lives in this case. you should have one on EVERY level. i have one in my basement and one on the main floor because the house is a ranch. they are very sensitive and go off even if there is a little bit of smoke in the house. also they are quite loud and i'm sure would wake up someone who was sleeping soundly.

I agree with NatalieD.

If you have children in the house (and even if you don't) installing smoke detectors is a MUST. Dosen't matter how small the house is, 3 bedroom or 7. You need one on every floor. We have one in the kitchen and one in the laundry room, to be safe.

And please, for the love of god and all that is holy, smoke outside. Fires can start from the tiniest of sparks.

The fireman would be able to smell the gasoline and the smoke detector situation is explained in the article

Smoke detectors are a pain in the butt and go off if you cook something on the stove. What this house needed was an indoor/outdoor automatic sprinkler system.

From the picture showing the devastation of the upstairs I would think the children and grandparents were upstairs and the master suite downstairs.

Exactly

I wouldn't have been so lucky to have a t-shirt on when running outside....maybe I need to re-think having clothes or bathrobe next to my door! We don't think about these things until after the fact!

The police say it was badly discarded embers

Have not read or heard that. I bet the contractor could have been the reason for this so called divortce. My advise, if you are a contractor work on the house and leave the wife alone.

Wrong, you think you would die trying but in a situation where you're faced with fire that incredibly hot, and so much smoke you literally cannot breathe, you have NO choice but to flee in the other direction and seek help. NO choice. We who have not actually been in such a fire have NO right to say such judgmental things.

First, I have to give my deepest deepest condolences to the mother and father.

Patriotic Girl

At 5 in the morning people should be out of their deep sound sleep unless they went to bed late..Someone should have smelled something to have it a huge fire like that..I find it strange that a woman and a man made it out without trying to help her children..I can assure you I would have died trying!! Know what I mean?? And if any of the women on here have kids,or a man for that matter, they know what I mean about trying..

To Patriotic Girl- redmoth said exactly what I was thinking when I read your comment. Seriously, have you ever been in a house fire? I have a strong feeling that you haven't because I am sure your thoughts on this matter would have been totally different.

All that money but, just can't afford a few smoke alarms? Odd...

You mean, of course, batteries. It had to have smoke alarms to be sold per CT code. Of course, I'm sure they are plenty of $150,000 homes in my fair state that lack working smoke alarms...

I recently learned this - smoke actually causes a sleeping person to sleep more deeply, becoming less able to respond to an alarm. Which is why it needs to be LOUD. I always thought the smell of smoke would wake me, but no. An old house like that could have been constructed of very dry, combustible wood that would go up very quickly. No blame needs to be assigned here, only compassion.

at 5am?? are u serious....I am in a coma, no matter when I went to sleep. jeez

The article says the couple was divorcing. I don't know that the contractor was her boyfriend. That's speculation.

speculation.. whos this contractor is he liscensed in Conn. I mean i have worked construction for a long time, ive seen some guys do some stuff that they think works when it doesnt. I would investigate this dude. Shady stuff...

But on the flip side whoever this man is he must be some kindof saint, i mean sometimes i wish i had the oppurtunity to save a childs life whether the child was in a fire or drowning, or simply being molested or stop an abduction, many people do not have the courage and strength to do what this man did. My heart goes out for his family. If i had the oppurtunity to meet them or talk to them i would simply tell them how grateful they were to have lived upon a man willing to go to such great lengths.. Its to bad he had to die a hero, because we simply need more people in the world like him. Its a shame..

@dmichaelc...he's no hero...getting the two kids you had with you out of the house safe...that would have been a hero...leading them downstairs into the fire and then "getting seperated"...sounds fishy...those kids would have been sticking close to him...not running through a burning house...he retreated and got out...but those poor babies...makes me wonder if were they led to their death by this monster...not a hero in my book.