(AP) FORT WAYNE, Ind.

A third child died from injuries she suffered in a weekend fire in Fort Wayne as investigators began trying to determine why the children were left unattended. Allen County Coroner Jon Brandenberger said 10-year-old Keasia Murray died overnight from asphyxia due to smoke inhalation, Fort Wayne television stations reported Sunday. Two other children, 12-year-old Keiara Sanders and 7-year-old Deonesti Luckett, died previously from the same cause. Another child remained hospitalized in critical condition.


Seven children between the ages of 7 and 13 were inside the home when the fire began in the kitchen before 2 a.m. Saturday, fire officials said. They said no adults were home at the time the fire started.

Fort Wayne Fire Chief Pete Kelly said the mother of at least one of the children had been home earlier in the evening but left around midnight. He said the fire department has contacted Child Protective Services to investigate why no adult was home.

One of the older children awoke to the smell of smoke and the sound of a fire alarm and rushed three children from the house, officials said.

Firefighters found four children inside the home. Fire, police and medical personnel performed emergency medical treatment, but one child died at the scene. The three others were taken to the hospital, where two of them later died.

Kelly said the fire was ruled accidental, having started with unattended food or cooking oil on a stove.

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