3 of 5 Children Who Died in Day Care Fire Were Local Firefighter's Kids

The fire broke out in the middle of the night Sunday.
Erie Fire Department

Luther Jones, a volunteer firefighter with the Lawrence Park Fire Department, was responding to another call when the fire broke out.

Three of five children who tragically died in a Pennsylvania day care fire over the weekend were the kids of a local firefighter.

Luther Jones, a volunteer firefighter with the Lawrence Park Fire Department, was responding to another call just down the street when the fire broke out at the local overnight day care early Sunday morning, WSEE-TV reported. 

Five children, ranging in age from 8 months to 7 years old, were killed in the blaze. The owner of the day care was also injured and taken to the hospital. Two children, ages 17 and 12, escaped the home by jumping out the window, according to reports.

Valerie Lockett-Slupski said that four of her grandchildren died in the fire.

“So we are all at a loss, trying to figure out how this happened,” Locket-Slupski told reporters Sunday, per the Washington-Examiner.

The Lawrence Park Fire Department is now raising money for Jones and his family to help cover funeral costs, according to reports. The cause of the fire is still under investigation. 

“It's "unthinkable," Joe Crotty, chief of the Lawrence Park Fire Department, told NBC News. "It's really beyond comprehension."

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