March 18, 2024 – Fresno County Sheriff's Office officials report that an eight-year-old boy and his six-year-old sister died as a result of a house fire on Sunday morning.  According to family members, both children had been diagnosed with Autism.  Their names are not available for release at this time.

Around 9:30 A.M. on Sunday, Fresno County Sheriff’s dispatchers received a report of a house being on fire along the 12400 block of Kamm Ave. in Kingsburg.  Cal Fire firefighters immediately responded.  While on their way, dispatchers learned of an unknown person, (later identified as the mother of the children) who was ramming a vehicle into the fully engulfed home.  Due to it being a possible threat to safety, deputies were dispatched to the scene.

Once on scene, firefighters navigated past a live downed power line in the yard to extinguish the fire.  Firefighters searched the home and found two children who did not survive.  No one else was in the home during the time of the fire.

The mother later explained she was inside the home when the fire broke out.  She was unable to get to her two children in another room, so she went outside and used her SUV to intentionally crash it into a portion of the house to try and create an exit point for her kids trapped inside.  During this rescue attempt, the woman suffered non-life-threatening burns to her hands and face.

Damage to the house has made it a complete loss.  Cal Fire is investigating the cause of this fire.  No foul play is suspected.

Members of the Sheriff’s Chaplaincy Unit, county mental health workers and the group L.O.S.S. responded to the scene to provide support services to the mother in this case. 

To learn more about the functions of the L.O.S.S. Team, visit: https://fresnocares.org/find-support/loss-team.

Source & photos: Fresno County Sheriff's Office