Investigation continues into Maryland fire that claimed life of Cascade girl, 2

Editor's note: This story was updated at 8:33 a.m. on Jan. 9, 2024, to identify the adults who lived in the victims' apartment.

CASCADE — The Office of the Maryland State Fire Marshal continued Monday to investigate the cause of a Friday night fire in Cascade that claimed the life of 2-year-old girl and caused minor injuries to two other family members.

Master Deputy State Fire Marshal Oliver Alkire said investigators continue to look at all accidental sources. Fire marshals did not uncover any evidence the fire was incendiary, he said.

The origin of the fire also is still being examined, said Alkire, spokesperson for the state fire marshal's office.

What fire marshals know of the origin is that the fire started on the second-floor in the area of a front porch and the front of the victim's apartment, Alkire said. That front porch was shared by the victim's family and another unit in the house that had been converted into four apartments.

The fire displaced 11 people, Alkire said.

What we know about the surviving victims of the Cascade apartment building fire

The state fire marshal's office had not released the name of the deceased child as of Monday.

Official identification of the deceased child is pending with the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, according to a news release from the state fire marshal's office. Still, the victim is believed to be the 2-year-old resident.

Alkire, on Monday afternoon, confirmed the adults who lived in that apartment are Leann Houck-Dray and Stephen Dray.

A GoFundMe media representative, in an email Monday morning, verified a GoFundMe fundraiser for the victim's family. That fundraiser post names the deceased child as Venus Selene Dray.

"(Selene) had a bubbly personality and unmatched energy," wrote her grandmother in the fundraising post.

As of late Monday morning, the effort had raised over $10,000. The post notes the "fire took everything. We can never replace her, she will never be forgotten, but we could use support to rebuild almost everything that was lost."

The surviving injured victim's are the girl's 1-year-old brother and their mother, 24, who both had minor smoke inhalation, Alkire said.

Political notebook: Who's running for Congress this year? We've got an early list

The mother was flown to MedStar Washington Hospital Center in Washington, D.C., by a Maryland State Police helicopter, and the boy was taken by ambulance to Meritus Medical Center near Hagerstown.

Alkire said the mother was released by Medstar just before midnight Friday and the boy was released by Meritus on early Saturday morning during the overnight hours.

The children's father was at work at the time of the fire, he said.

Mom tried repeatedly to save her daughter

The Smithsburg Community Volunteer Fire Co. and surrounding departments responded around 6:20 p.m. Friday to a dwelling fire at 25609 Military Road in northeast Washington County, according to the fire marshal's office and the county's Division of Emergency Services.

When the mother discovered the fire, she picked up the 1-year-old and was able to escape down the rear steps, Alkire said. There were two exits, steps out the front, shown in a picture of the fire scene, and steps out the back, he said.

"It was a fast-moving fire. It was very intense. She did make multiple attempts to re-enter the apartment, however she had to back out due to the intense heat, heavy smoke and rapidly spreading fire, Alkire said.

Arriving firefighters discovered the home had been converted into apartments, that an adult and child were injured, and that other tenants were saying another child was still inside, according to a state fire marshal's news release.

When the first firefighters arrived at 25609 Military Road, they "encountered a challenging scenario with heavy fire showing on both the first and second floors," according to the Washington County Division of Emergency Services' Facebook page.

Firefighters and investigators later found the 2-year-old inside the second-floor apartment, according to the state fire marshal's office.

Apartment building fire rekindled Saturday morning

Nearly 75 firefighters from Washington and Frederick counties in Maryland, and Franklin and Adams counties in Pennsylvania, responded to the fire, according to the emergency services division and fire marshal's release.

The fire was upgraded to a two-alarm fire, which resulted in additional resources and firefighters being deployed, Alkire said.

It was extremely cold and water the firefighters used turned to ice, resulting in slippery conditions, he said.

Investigators had cleared the scene by 2:40 a.m., according to an updated Facebook post by the state fire marshal's office.

Hagerstown Fire Department goals: Hagerstown's retiring, new fire chiefs talk about challenges ahead

Around 4 a.m. Saturday, firefighters returned for a rekindle of the fire, Alkire said.

While the original fire had been contained to the front porch and the victim's apartment, when the rekindle occurred the roof was on fire, he said.

The state fire marshal's office and the Maryland State Police Criminal Enforcement Division are investigating the fire.

Investigators were unable to find working smoke alarms, according to the release from the fire marshal's office.

The fire marshal's office reminds all Maryland residents that smoke alarms have proven to be the difference between life and death in a fire emergency.

"My heart aches after learning of another devastating fire, and every member of the Office of the State Fire Marshal extend our deepest condolences to the family," Acting State Fire Marshal Jason M. Mowbray said in the release.

The list of other responding fire and public safety companies from Washington County includes Leitersburg Volunteer Fire Co., Smithsburg EMS, Community Rescue Service, the Washington County Division of Emergency Services, Washington County's air and rehab units, the county's fire police and the Washington County Volunteer Fire and Rescue Association's safety officers, according to a Washington County 911 supervisor.

Other responding units include Franklin Fire, Blue Ridge Fire & Rescue, Waynesboro Fire Co., Waynesboro EMS, Franklin Medic 23, and the Site R Fire Department from Franklin County, Pa.; Vigilant Hose Co., Guardian Hose Co. and Frederick County Fire & Rescue from Frederick County, Md.; and Fairfield Fire and Fountaindale Volunteer Fire Department from Adams County, Pa.

This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Washington County fire claims life of child, injures two others